Letter - Dated 19 October 2006
Okay ... everyone. Here is the letter Mark sent back on the 25th of October. According to his email last Wednesday, there is another letter on the way. Hopefully it will show up soon and I wanted to make sure that I got this one up before that one comes.
19 October 2006
Dearly beloved family,
Well, I said in my email (18 Oct '06) that I would write a letter that night, but I got carried away in looking at the two photo albums that ya'll sent me so I didn't get to start the letter. So, I am making up for it by starting the letter early this morning. I am sorry for taking so long before writing another letter to ya'll but that package that I sent took all the writing power out of me. However, a lot of stuff has happened since I sent out that last letter.
As ya'll know I got transferred out of Benavidez and into General Urquiza. That is in the zone of Belgrano, and as Elder Collie said on the tape that I sent ya'll, Belgrano is the hardest zone in the mission. I really didn't get a taste of how hard the area was in my first transfer, because it was my first transfer with a Latino and everything was new to me plus I was working hard at trying to make our companionship better then what it was. It was just too bad that I had to leave the dream companionship with Elder Hoyt, but here we are two transfers later and Elder Hoyt is now a zone leader. So he moved on to bigger and better things and he deserves it because he is a awesome missionary.
Never the less, time passed and Elder Vergara was transferred to Tigre after only 2 transfers in Urquiza. I then received my new companion Elder Avilez who is also a Latino and is also a Chileno. With all these Chilenos I am not getting to practice "vos" at all because they speak in "tu." However, Elder Avilez is a workaholic and knows how to work smart. On top of that he wanted to work even harder to get back to district leader since he was de-promoted from district leader because his old companion was doing stuff very stupid and Elder Avilez knew but didn't tell the mission president.
So, now we were working at 100 percent to find new investigators since we didn't have any that were progressing. We were talking to hundreds of people in the streets every week and passing by all of the old investigators in our area book plus all in-actives and members trying to find investigators. We were dead exhausted at the end of each day. However, we were not seeing the fruits of our labors. We went 2 full weeks together in the beginning of the transfer without teaching one single one of the lessons. We walked and walked all day long. In general the members weren't helping us at all.
So now here we are 4 weeks into the transfer and finally things are starting to look good. In the past 4 days we have found four new investigators without any help from the ward. However, we are looking to change this with a fireside that we are organizing for all the members of the ward the 29 of October. However, in order to get all the members to come we had to invite someone high up in the chain. So, we called our Mission President and told him our idea and he liked it and said he will come. So we are going to prepare a workshop to try to get the members back into the Missionary work. I don't know how they left from it since almost every single person in our ward is a ex-missioanry, and that includes the sisters too.
So we are really excited about this fireside, but we just have to make sure that everything is planned perfect and goes as planned since the president is going to be in attendance. We have interviews with him on Monday so we will see if we can't get him to do a short little pep-rally talk to get the excitement flowing back in the members. So the area is way hard but it doesn't suck because the ward has potential.
25 October 2006 - Wednesday
Well, once again I have not wrote since last week but I want to finish up this letter so I can send it out this morning. Hopefully, we will still be able to do the fireside this Sunday. Last Sunday the Bishop was changing his mind left and right.
Monday we had interviews with the president. When we got there I had one of your packages there waiting for me. Interviews went great. I think I am rubbing off real well with the president. He told me I need to wear a hat, because my whole head is burnt. But it can't be any hat. They have hats in the offices like the straw hats of Granddad's and he said I could use on of them but they were all too small.
The last few days have been way hot and humid. I am soaked in sweat before 12:00 in the afternoon. My first summer heat in what seems like forever. Sure I'm used to it but it sucks with all these clothes on. Then on top of that this zone normally has a rule that all the Elders have to wear suits during the hotter time of the year since we are in the city and it is all business people in suits. Hopefully, this rule doesn't come back.
When I got home in the night I opened up the package. I opened it up from the bottom so the first thing I saw was a football and Reese's. I didn't think life could get better. Then it seemed as if from heaven Pepto-Bismol fell into my lap. I spent about half a hour putting the turkey together exactly the way ya'll had it. It was a little hard but not as hard as finally getting all the way through the envelops and knots and tissue paper of the invitation to the wedding of Katie and David. However, the invitation was really rice. Dean's was pretty funny too.
I forgot to tell you about the albums. I really enjoyed them. It was exactly what I wanted. Pictures of everything. Holy Cow, those houses on Stratford really look nice. Now I know why everyone says Georgia is green. Holy Cow everything is green. I never realized how green it was but after living two months in Utah and almost 7 months in Argentina where there was no green, seeing those pictures were really a shock.
However, out of all the stuff in the package the one thing I was excited for was the video. Because the video brings ya'll to Argnetina. Which is better than anything else I could get.
Last night I set all up my camera in my bed and had done everything I needed to do to go to bed so that when the tape was over I coudl just go straight to sleeping. I started the tape at 10:15 p.m. and finished around 11:20. But it was the best hour in my mission since the last video tape I got from ya'll.
First, I want to congratulate all the girls for being American. I had forgotten what American women look like. Also whoever took the picture at the Braves Game of the girls on the Jumbo screen, all I have to say is you just scored 1 million brownie points with me. Really, I had forgotten what women look like without mullets since that seems to be the favorite haircut down here. Which reminds me, Talia, I love your hair. Well done, and Natalie you don't look a day over 18 years old and definitely not pregnant. Even Chrisinda and Jennifer Lopez had it going on.
I want to compliment everyone on being so funny. Especially Bobby and Scott. I almost peed in my pants during the interview of Bobby. I promise I won't bring my camera to the zoo anymore. Sharon, Andy and Jackson - ¡Bien Hecho! You can't go wrong with the clothes of Jimmy and the glasses of Debi. Jackson your just always cute. Dean really does have a awesome golf swing, it was way better than mine this past Wednesday and Logan is just adorable. Everytime I show my pictures Logan receives all of the compliments. Pero una Prequnta: Who in the world was that person on the sofa?
Brian has completely turned my room around or should I say studio, however, I love it. I bet you have fun listening to music of the world on your stereo. I know I would. All this church music is killing me. I never realized how addictive I was to music. I think my subs did it to me. Which Brian, by the way, what did you ever end up doing with them?
So Keith and Bobby no longer work for Apac. Does this mean Keith has more time to play splinter cell or does he just stare at Talia's hair like me?
Grandmom's back in school. Wow neat, go get em. At least Granddad has the Falcons to watch now that the Braves suck worse than Detroit. ?No me diga!
Nathan seems to be enjoying football. I can't believe that was him in the pictures of the three point stance.
Christie and Brittany I am glad ya'll are still sitting on the couch with the cover on. Andy learn from their example.
So David is the slave of Matt now? But none of that matters if he can get Herbert to go on his mission. Katie, yes! Welcome into the family. You can take my spot in all the family pictures beside David.
Mike keep up the spanish. I could teach you a few things to say in front of the Mexicans about Andy that would be way funny. But I think Andy can embarrass himself better than anyone else could do it to him.
Dad and Mom, First Mom, you were on the last video tape. When you were recording the cell phone and it cut off, the reflection of your face appeared on the screen. Dad, pocket the money for the van because I couldn't see anything wrong with it but thanks for reminding me about the ugliness on my car.
Finally, Scott thanks for strapping a thingy to your hand and walking around and teaching me the difference between girls and boys.
To all, thank you very much for all of your support and for sharing all your lives with me. Thanks a bunch.
Love,
Elder Putnam
19 October 2006
Dearly beloved family,
Well, I said in my email (18 Oct '06) that I would write a letter that night, but I got carried away in looking at the two photo albums that ya'll sent me so I didn't get to start the letter. So, I am making up for it by starting the letter early this morning. I am sorry for taking so long before writing another letter to ya'll but that package that I sent took all the writing power out of me. However, a lot of stuff has happened since I sent out that last letter.
As ya'll know I got transferred out of Benavidez and into General Urquiza. That is in the zone of Belgrano, and as Elder Collie said on the tape that I sent ya'll, Belgrano is the hardest zone in the mission. I really didn't get a taste of how hard the area was in my first transfer, because it was my first transfer with a Latino and everything was new to me plus I was working hard at trying to make our companionship better then what it was. It was just too bad that I had to leave the dream companionship with Elder Hoyt, but here we are two transfers later and Elder Hoyt is now a zone leader. So he moved on to bigger and better things and he deserves it because he is a awesome missionary.
Never the less, time passed and Elder Vergara was transferred to Tigre after only 2 transfers in Urquiza. I then received my new companion Elder Avilez who is also a Latino and is also a Chileno. With all these Chilenos I am not getting to practice "vos" at all because they speak in "tu." However, Elder Avilez is a workaholic and knows how to work smart. On top of that he wanted to work even harder to get back to district leader since he was de-promoted from district leader because his old companion was doing stuff very stupid and Elder Avilez knew but didn't tell the mission president.
So, now we were working at 100 percent to find new investigators since we didn't have any that were progressing. We were talking to hundreds of people in the streets every week and passing by all of the old investigators in our area book plus all in-actives and members trying to find investigators. We were dead exhausted at the end of each day. However, we were not seeing the fruits of our labors. We went 2 full weeks together in the beginning of the transfer without teaching one single one of the lessons. We walked and walked all day long. In general the members weren't helping us at all.
So now here we are 4 weeks into the transfer and finally things are starting to look good. In the past 4 days we have found four new investigators without any help from the ward. However, we are looking to change this with a fireside that we are organizing for all the members of the ward the 29 of October. However, in order to get all the members to come we had to invite someone high up in the chain. So, we called our Mission President and told him our idea and he liked it and said he will come. So we are going to prepare a workshop to try to get the members back into the Missionary work. I don't know how they left from it since almost every single person in our ward is a ex-missioanry, and that includes the sisters too.
So we are really excited about this fireside, but we just have to make sure that everything is planned perfect and goes as planned since the president is going to be in attendance. We have interviews with him on Monday so we will see if we can't get him to do a short little pep-rally talk to get the excitement flowing back in the members. So the area is way hard but it doesn't suck because the ward has potential.
25 October 2006 - Wednesday
Well, once again I have not wrote since last week but I want to finish up this letter so I can send it out this morning. Hopefully, we will still be able to do the fireside this Sunday. Last Sunday the Bishop was changing his mind left and right.
Monday we had interviews with the president. When we got there I had one of your packages there waiting for me. Interviews went great. I think I am rubbing off real well with the president. He told me I need to wear a hat, because my whole head is burnt. But it can't be any hat. They have hats in the offices like the straw hats of Granddad's and he said I could use on of them but they were all too small.
The last few days have been way hot and humid. I am soaked in sweat before 12:00 in the afternoon. My first summer heat in what seems like forever. Sure I'm used to it but it sucks with all these clothes on. Then on top of that this zone normally has a rule that all the Elders have to wear suits during the hotter time of the year since we are in the city and it is all business people in suits. Hopefully, this rule doesn't come back.
When I got home in the night I opened up the package. I opened it up from the bottom so the first thing I saw was a football and Reese's. I didn't think life could get better. Then it seemed as if from heaven Pepto-Bismol fell into my lap. I spent about half a hour putting the turkey together exactly the way ya'll had it. It was a little hard but not as hard as finally getting all the way through the envelops and knots and tissue paper of the invitation to the wedding of Katie and David. However, the invitation was really rice. Dean's was pretty funny too.
I forgot to tell you about the albums. I really enjoyed them. It was exactly what I wanted. Pictures of everything. Holy Cow, those houses on Stratford really look nice. Now I know why everyone says Georgia is green. Holy Cow everything is green. I never realized how green it was but after living two months in Utah and almost 7 months in Argentina where there was no green, seeing those pictures were really a shock.
However, out of all the stuff in the package the one thing I was excited for was the video. Because the video brings ya'll to Argnetina. Which is better than anything else I could get.
Last night I set all up my camera in my bed and had done everything I needed to do to go to bed so that when the tape was over I coudl just go straight to sleeping. I started the tape at 10:15 p.m. and finished around 11:20. But it was the best hour in my mission since the last video tape I got from ya'll.
First, I want to congratulate all the girls for being American. I had forgotten what American women look like. Also whoever took the picture at the Braves Game of the girls on the Jumbo screen, all I have to say is you just scored 1 million brownie points with me. Really, I had forgotten what women look like without mullets since that seems to be the favorite haircut down here. Which reminds me, Talia, I love your hair. Well done, and Natalie you don't look a day over 18 years old and definitely not pregnant. Even Chrisinda and Jennifer Lopez had it going on.
I want to compliment everyone on being so funny. Especially Bobby and Scott. I almost peed in my pants during the interview of Bobby. I promise I won't bring my camera to the zoo anymore. Sharon, Andy and Jackson - ¡Bien Hecho! You can't go wrong with the clothes of Jimmy and the glasses of Debi. Jackson your just always cute. Dean really does have a awesome golf swing, it was way better than mine this past Wednesday and Logan is just adorable. Everytime I show my pictures Logan receives all of the compliments. Pero una Prequnta: Who in the world was that person on the sofa?
Brian has completely turned my room around or should I say studio, however, I love it. I bet you have fun listening to music of the world on your stereo. I know I would. All this church music is killing me. I never realized how addictive I was to music. I think my subs did it to me. Which Brian, by the way, what did you ever end up doing with them?
So Keith and Bobby no longer work for Apac. Does this mean Keith has more time to play splinter cell or does he just stare at Talia's hair like me?
Grandmom's back in school. Wow neat, go get em. At least Granddad has the Falcons to watch now that the Braves suck worse than Detroit. ?No me diga!
Nathan seems to be enjoying football. I can't believe that was him in the pictures of the three point stance.
Christie and Brittany I am glad ya'll are still sitting on the couch with the cover on. Andy learn from their example.
So David is the slave of Matt now? But none of that matters if he can get Herbert to go on his mission. Katie, yes! Welcome into the family. You can take my spot in all the family pictures beside David.
Mike keep up the spanish. I could teach you a few things to say in front of the Mexicans about Andy that would be way funny. But I think Andy can embarrass himself better than anyone else could do it to him.
Dad and Mom, First Mom, you were on the last video tape. When you were recording the cell phone and it cut off, the reflection of your face appeared on the screen. Dad, pocket the money for the van because I couldn't see anything wrong with it but thanks for reminding me about the ugliness on my car.
Finally, Scott thanks for strapping a thingy to your hand and walking around and teaching me the difference between girls and boys.
To all, thank you very much for all of your support and for sharing all your lives with me. Thanks a bunch.
Love,
Elder Putnam
posted by Debi Putnam at
1:54 PM
