It’s heatin up in Paraguay. Rain is even unwelcome since it only makes it hotter afterwards from the evaporating moisture (almost like reverse rain going upwards) from the HOT Paraguayan sun. A feeling I’m sure I’ll look back on in 2 years with nostalgia. For now, I’m just trying to pretend like I’m in a Sauna.
Things really are great. I can’t express how excited I am to get back out into the field and I know Heavenly Father will send me RIGHT where I need to go…like he always has, both on the mission and off. I know he takes care of those that are at least TRYING to do what is right, imperfect as we may be.
Training has been crazy here in the office. There have been more than several occasions where Elder Peterson has leaned back, rubbed his red, bloodshot eyes, and said, “my brain is fried…we need a break.” That’s how things roll here in the office. There is lots to do and never enough time to do it. I sure have learned to be at peace even with lots of things up in the air.
Changes are different again this time, so we are going out to eat all you can eat meat at Paulistas tonight, and the departing missionaries go home on Wednesday. I could go out THEN or possibly the following Wednesday when the rest of the mission gets changed. I’ll let you know what happens.
The special changes along with Christmas have made it hard to get much work done in my new area (Campo Grande, where I’ll be just 2 weeks). We’ve still seen the miracles with the little time we’ve had and found an awesome investigator named Maria who lit up when we told her she could speak with God. The miracle was that we found her through a front gate speaker contact. There’s a first for everything. We gained her confidence when my new companion (and even before that, best friend) showed her a picture of his dog at home, which looked a lot like her dog (which happened to be HER best friend). Through small and simple things… :-).
Well I love you all and wish you a Merry Christmas (a little late) and a Happy New Year! With love!
Elder McCarty
Img 0499 Elder Maddux’s birthday was full of funny stories. WE had a rental car because the other mission needed to borrow our van. Well, Maddux wanted to go see if he could eat a whole KILO of Quatro D (the BEST) ice cream on his birthday. As we rushed there, he crashed the car (not too bad) and blamed it on the brakes not working…lol. Anyhow, he ate the ice cream and we were all amazed, since we ate 1 Kilo among like 5 of us. Hahaha.
Img 0495 Pres. And Hma Wade took us out to lunch for Elder Maddux’s Birthday. The waitresses made him dance and before he did it he glanced at them, then at pres, and back and forth, until President NOT saying anything was taken as permission and he did. She even spun him around. It was hilarious.
Img 0476 Elder Vail and I swinging at our new favorite place to eat in our area where they make REAL smoothies and delicious sandwiches. It’s called “Lemonaid.”
122009 034 Cool sunset, and me just as happy as can be.
122009 026 Rodrigo (a Joven from the ward) and I sitting at a bus stop. We didn’t take a bus, but just thought it would be a cool pic. I think we were wrong…lol.
011 Trio pics. Pretty awesome sunset but our faces didn’t really turn out. Me, Elder Vail and Elder Peterson.
Remember this as you put your new years resolutions.
“He whose life is not in harmony with his conscience, and who is anxious to remedy his mind and conduct in a particular direction, let him first mature his purpose by earnest thought and self-examination, and having arrived at a final conclusion, let him frame his resolve, and having done so let him not swerve from it, let him remain true to his decision under all circumstances, and he cannot fail to achieve his good purpose; for the Great Law ever shields and protects him who, no matter how deep his sins, or how great and many his failures and mistakes, has, deep in his heart, resolved upon the finding of a better way, and every obstacle must at last give way before a matured and unshaken resolve.” –James Allen
