WOW.

Dear All,

Well, wow. I just wrote a HUGE e-mail telling you about EVERYTHING. But then I accidently hit ´si´ when it asked me if I wanted to restart (dang spanish!) And now I am out of time. :/ Haha. Even the mission has it´s ups and downs! :)

Well, I am sorry this is short, but...I have no time. We have a lunch appointment in a few minutes, but I will send this e-mail, with some pictures, and then I will tell you more next week. :)

-There are a lot of stay dogs here.

-My companion Elder Birchall is the best!

-Chile is the best; I am having a blast!

-I got letters from Skyler Blumenthal and Chelsea Steed. You can send dearelders here, but I only get mail once a month or so.

-We have four investigators with baptismal dates. :)

-And so you know...I am in La Sarena. There is a big story behind this, but I have no time to explain again. :/

And...yeah, wow, I wish I had more time. I love you all, and I promise I will have more to say next week.

I love you all. There will be more pictures and words next week. I promise. :)

Yours Truly,

Elder Nelson IV

Last MTC E-mail

Dear All,

Wow. I can't believe this is it. A week from now, I will be in Chile. Surrounded by the fastest Spanish speakers in the world. :) It's a bit nerve-racking, I will admit. But I've come this far, and I'm ready for the next challenge. I am excited to struggle down in Chile. :)

Last Wednesday/Thursday (I can't remember which--that happens a lot here in the MTC) we got out travel plans, and that was another highlight of the MTC. Our district celebrated, took pictures, and all that stuff. It was a great time. :) We are excited! I fly out to Dallas at 3 PM on Monday; and then I leave Dallas at 9 PM, arriving in Chile around 9 AM or so. ;) Sounds fun, eh?

Just like Hermano Cragun, Hermano Shulca returned from his Christmas trip (to Ecuador, where he is from; he hadn't been there to see his family in SIX years) last Friday. We knew he was coming back, of course, and he was district-hugged/swarmed when he walked in. It was good to finally have our teacher back! He told us all about Ecuador, and now I am really excited to go to South America.

The TRC this last week was a funny one. We were teaching this lady who pretty much would only speak Spanish to us. She said something to me, and I had NO idea what she was saying. So I said, "Lo siento. Mi espanol no es bueno." She then said something about Paraguay and Ecuador, and I still had no idea what she was saying so I said, "Si!" Later...my teacher Hermano Ross told me that he talked to this lady later and she said, "Poor Elder Nelson! He is SO sad to go on his mission to Paraguay. You need to teach him better and get him more excited!" The irony, of course, is that I am super excited to get to Chile. :)

My good friend Jeffrey Johnson got here a week ago, and it's been great to see him around the MTC the last week. :) He is going to Mississippi, and I've told him and his district how much they will love it.

God definitely has a sense of humor. :) Here in the MTC, everyone has to write a talk on a topic that the branch presidency gives you. And then in sacrament meeting, they will just randomly select two elders/sisters and have them speak. Well, before Hermano Nelson got up and said who was going to speak, I turned to my good friend Elder Mallory and said, "If I have to speak today, I am going to beat someone up." Well, the timing was perfect! Right after I said that, I got called up! We laughed, and I gave a pretty decent talk in Espanol. :) I didn't beat anyone up either, for those wondering.

Last night, we had the privledge of hearing from L. Tom Perry again! It was the best. He gave an excellent talk. He is truly an Apostle of the Lord! He talked about what we as missionaries need to have increased testimonies in (The Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith, Thomas S. Monson, etc). The BEST, though, was the closing prayer. When the Sister got up to say the closing prayer, everyone had their eyes closed, ready to hear a girl voice, but...nope! It was L. Tom Perry! Not giving the prayer, but he got up to make a quick correction to his talk (he gave the wrong date for when the priesthood was restored). Of course, his wife was the one who corrected him. :) It goes to show us that even Apostles of the Lord make simple mistakes and aren't perfect!

Well, I have about two minutes left, and last week I BARELY got my e-mail sent off with 2 seconds left on the clock. PHEW!

I love and miss you all. I'm going to miss this great country. :) But I am excited to get to my field of labor. Everyone, keep in touch. And rely on the Lord in ALL things. He will bless you!

Yours Truly,

Elder Nelson IV

Helaman 5:12

The Final Countdown :(

Mi Familia y Mis Amigos!

Hola todos personas en mi vida. :) Haha. Como estan?

Happy Birthday Landon! I can't believe you will be five in a few days. Already! Wow. I am proud of you, little guy. Uncle Ben misses you and loves you. :)

It'll be hard to leave this place in twelve days. Hermano Shulca once told us that the MTC was a special place--a place where tears and special memories are shared with your district. Since coming here, I've had many of such experiences. However, one of my favorite MTC memories came last Friday. We were sitting in the hall waiting for what we thought was going to be a sub teacher. I am talking to some members of my district when I hear someone yell, "Hermano Cragun!!" (He was a teacher we thought was leaving and we weren't going to have him again.) Wow. What a reunion! Elder Fanene and I were the first to get to him. And before you knew it, our whole district was in a huge group hug suffocating our beloved teacher. :) It really was a memory that you had to be there for. Words cannot describe how happy we were! But then again...we've also had twelve subs since Christmas time, and it's tough to learn with so many teachers. It was just good to see a familiar face!

And you can tell that most Elders in my district have never been part of a strong group like our district. And it really makes me grateful for my brothers. This district is GREAT. But it will never come close to the bond I share with my five brothers. The last few days, I've just been really grateful for my family--especially my five brothers. I love you all.

I want to thank Brent Nelson especially. I never told him this, but he is the reason I am still here. :) Like I said in a past e-mail, I really questioned myself and my faith when I first got here. However, Brent Nelson was the first one to write me. And there was one thing he said that hit me so hard. He said, "Dad seems to miss you a lot. I do, too. But you have to remember that the people you will touch would miss you a whole lot more if you weren't to go serve them." It's so true. This work isn't about me missing my family; it's not about me! It's the Lord's work. I am an instrument in His hand; I am a mouthpiece! I don't convert anyone; it's the Spirit's job. I've been called to do this, and I must obey.

On Fast Sunday, I bore testimony in Spanish. When I got up there, a few members of my district started laughing because--well--my Spanish is kind of funny, and I--of course--started off trying to make people laugh by saying: "Lo siento. Mi espanol no es....super bueno. Pero! Es bueno....mas o menos." It was a good confidence booster for me. :)

At the Temple walk on Sunday, I ran into Brother Phillipy's niece! It was awesome. It was great to talk to someone who knew Charlie and his family. I loved it. :)

Elder Ringwood of the Seventy came and spoke to us last night. He spoke about "Enduring To The End." What a powerful talk! But--wow--one of the prelude hymns we sang was "Behold! A Royal Army!" THAT song with THIS many missionries singing it will blow you away. The Spirit was so strong. We will all be victorious! But only through Christ, Our Savior. I know that is true.

I have 50 seconds left, and so I am out of time again. :( I love you all! One more e-mail from the MTC next week. That's just crazy. I can't believe it.

Yours Truly,

Elder Nelson IV