Merlo- Week #45

Fighting for my Son's Life

Hey family!

Let’s just say that my keyboard has all the letters scratched off of it, so this is really going to test my typing skills. Yes I am sure I want short sleeve. All my long sleeve shirts are fine, but after wearing all the short sleeves all summer, and washing them so many times, they are just yellowish brown...I need new ones. I have no idea where someone could hem pants here. Also, they really should put the tags to pants in the front so I don’t have to go to the bathroom to check my size...which is 34. You are correct mom; my bug spray is still sealed in my suitcase, not to be opened until it becomes a big enough problem to annoy me. I will probably die of dengue, and it will serve me right.

Well, I can’t believe Mother’s Day is already here. It kind of snuck up on me, and I need to go buy a card today. We haven’t gotten any news about it, but tomorrow is zone conference, so I am sure President will say something. It will most definitely be the same time limit to talk, and I have no idea when I will be calling. Probably in the afternoon your time, later evening my time. Feels like we just hung up from Christmas...kind of...I admire you two for how well you handle the separation from one of your children. I, too, am a parent now, so I can relate. Basically, I am not sure how you said goodbye to me in the MTC because the thought of having to say goodbye to my boy and give him to some other missionary makes my emotionally, and physically, sick. Haha, nah, but really.

Well, my first week as a Trainer was interesting, to say the least. We had ups and downs, and drunk guys grabbing my companion, and me coming to his rescue. Elder Latorre is great, but he has the MTC lag, or in other words, he thinks that every lesson is like how he practiced in the MTC, so we have been working on realizing how to teach shorter lessons and according to needs, but other than that, he is great. He is a great teacher already, and he already does his contacts. The first few days he was scared to do them, but now he has become...a machine...YES! I was really nervous because I wanted to reach a few goals, 2 estandartes at least, to give him some excitement, well without Monday or Tuesday to work, I was nervous that he wasn’t going to have that experience, but I went to work trying to be the best I could be as an example. Long story short, many prayers were answered and we reached 4 indicators! SWEET! I am feeling good for this transfer. Basically the hymn lyrics describe it perfectly. “I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me. Confused at the grace that so fully He proffers me.” I made a lot of mistakes this week, but it all worked out pretty well in the end. Anyway, so the drunk guy story. We were walking in our area, and now that it is winter it gets dark at like 7, but we don’t go home until 9. So we were walking and some old drunk man is in the street, and stops us to talk, I blow by him and tell my kid to do the same, but he doesn’t listen to his father...and stops frozen in fear thinking that we were getting robbed. I told him to come on, but he didn’t move, and the drunk guy walks over to him and grabs him, but more like he was disoriented and didn’t mean to grab so strongly. Then starts apologizing, but still holding on to Elder Latorre, asking him where he is from, and stuff like that. Haha, he was a harmless old man that was drunk, but my comp looked like he was going to die from fear. So I go over there to get him off, but the drunk guy gets mad because I am northamerican and starts yelling at me about how he served in Iraq against the US, so I asked if he was a terrorist, and he looked at me funny, squinting his eyes, then says, “Depends....are you a spy?” I was tempted to go along with this game...but didn’t and said we were missionaries, grabbed my son in his still frozen state and walked away...he attempted to follow after us, but soon gave up his quest when we turned a corner out of sight. That was about the highlight of the week, and now I am going to use the time I have left to try and send pictures. Love you all!

Sean

P.S.Congrats Todd!