Story of My Life: The Worst Injury Yet

Dear All,

When all is said and done here in Cerro Alegre, I am always going to remember the powerful experiences that I´ve had here. We have cambios today, and I am excited for the next challenge. The Lord makes the choice; and I obey. :)

The Happy Hill will always be remembered from the injuries that I´ve had here, too. The dog bite in my behind and the nail in the foot--yeah, those were bad! But my worst injury came a few days ago. You see, Elder Mann and I just finished a lesson, and we were rushing to our next destination. It was really dark outside, and we couldn´t see much. As always, I was just following Elder Mann! We eventually reached this point, though, where it got a little tricky. It consisted of a very steep hill and swinging around someone´s gate to reach the other side. (It´s really hard to explain. See video/pictures.) Elder Mann made it look easy, and my first thought was, "Yeah, I can do that!!" But right before I attempted this little task, I felt the STRONGEST impression that I should not do it! Haha. I told Elder Mann that I didn´t feel good about it, and he said, "Well, I don´t know what else we can do!" I looked for other ways to get around this gate, but I found no other way. So--with time--I eventually decided to give it a try. With my water bottle and a Book of Mormon in my hand, I attempted to swing around this gate. And as you´ve probably already guessed, I slipped and fell down this hill. It really hurt! I came out with a few cuts and scrapes. And--as you can probably guess, too--my companion felt absolutely TERRIBLE.

The whole situation is hard to explain, really. But I will tell you this much: I´ve learned my lesson from that experience. When we have promptings and impressions from the Spirit, we NEED to follow those promptings and impressions. Even though I DID fall down that steep hill, my first thought was, "Wow. The Spirit told me NOT to do that." Haha. And then I made a promise to myself later that night. That I would NEVER go against the Spirit´s promptings again. I am a witness that the Lord DOES love us and because He loves us, we can have the guidance of the Spirit in our every day lives! I am a witness that we CAN receive direction from the Spirit. We CANNOT afford to take this wonderful gift for granted!

I learned more from my fall, too. I learned that the Lord really is watching me, and I am being protected. After the fall, I stood up and saw that I was pretty dirty and pretty cut up. Elder Mann apologized to me, and I told him it was okay. He then said, "Wow. How did you stop so suddenly? Did you do that?" Haha. The truth was, I was scared to death and I didn´t try to do anything! Days later, Elder Yost and I went back to where I fell (see pictures and video), and this time I saw where I fell in the day-time opposed to when I actually fell and couldn´t see a thing. I can´t explain it, but...physics tells me that I should have kept falling/rolling! We calculated that I fell anywhere from 23-30 feet. And not only that, but there were a TON of rocks where I fell. And yet--I only came out with a few scrapes and cuts. As Elder Yost and I observed where I fell, my heart was full because it was a proof to me that the Lord truly is watching me! That fall should have been a WHOLE lot worse. I learned a lot from that experience. :)

I hope everyone had a good 4th of July! We had a good one. We sang the National Anthem last night before going to bed. It was great. We also drew the flag in our planners (see picture), and it gave the members and investigators a good laugh. I love being here in Chile, but being here has really humbled me and has helped me truly appreciate the country we have. I love my country, and we truly are blessed to live in a country of rights and freedom!

I had a good laugh on Saturday night when I talked to this RM while Elder Mann was doing an interview. This RM (Andres Chacon; he´s in one of the wards here) served in Concepcion South, and he has been home for a month or so. He asked me if I knew anyone from Vegas that served there. I said, "Yeah, Elder Morgan." Haha. Turns out that he knew Landan Morgan, and that was pretty cool. It was funny, though, because he said, "Elder Morgan? He went home a long time ago!" Haha. And I just said, "Well, not really. Didn´t he go home around January or so?" And he said, "Yeah! That was a long time ago!" I, of course, then realized that January was a good six months ago, and that I´ve almost been here in Chile for six months, too. Weird! It was really funny. January seems just like yesterday!

I read something very powerful from the First Presidency Message of Preach My Gospel. It says, "The Lord will reward and richly bless you as you humbly and prayerfully serve Him. More happiness awaits you than you have ever expierenced as you labor among His children." Wow. I read that, and it hit me pretty hard! It says the same thing (or something similiar) in our call letters. But when I read that promise and thought about it, my heart was just filled. I know that promise is true. I´ve been so blessed to be here serving the Lord full-time. And I´ve had some of the happiest moments here as I´ve labored amongst the people of Chile. I love them, and I am grateful for this calling the Lord has entrusted me with.

Our Savior lives, and His Gospel is the ONLY way to obtain eternal life. I testify that the Spirit can guide us and direct us in all things. I am grateful for this gift that we all have! I challenge you all to live your life in a way that the Spirit can be with you at all times, in all things, and in all places. If we do all we can to maintain the Spirit, we will see blessings come from the Spirit and His guidance. I am grateful for the challenges and the struggles we go through in this life and for the growth we are able to go through! I am grateful for little experiences that we have that help us learn Gospel lessons, such as me falling from a cliff. :) I will forever be grateful for that fall.

I love you all.

Con Mucho Amor,

Elder Nelson IV

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D&C 122:7