The Rolla Holla! Saturday, 6.13.09 The Office,the Zoo, and the Work of God

Today we went to the zoo and it was awesome. I bought popcorn and ice cream and smiled all day long. We saw a monkey that throws bananas and spits water at the people. The elephants were supposedly closed off because one killed a kid…and then ate him (so much for Paraguayan news, since afterwards the security guard told us it was just because they were building a new wall). We saw a little monkey just like the one I sent you pictures of before that had escaped from its cage. Leopards, lions, exotic birds, we even saw some BYU students over there (seriously, we did…maybe they were fellow customers, I couldn´t really tell…hahaha) all for the price of 20 cents in American money. One more grain on the heap of reasons I LOVE PARAGUAY!
The first week in the office was GREAT! We did changes this week and so it was a little hectic. There were lots of nights until 2 or 3 finishing projects for President and then getting up to take missionaries that are going home to the airport or picking the new missionaries up. My companion and trainer, Elder Hansen moved out, so now there are 7 of us in the house. My companion now is Elder Williamson, which applies at all times, even though we split up into our separate offices when we arrive for the work day. Email is a lot easier since I just do it here on my computer, as well as sending pictures (of which there are fewer cool ones, since we´re in an office all day and only go out at night).
My official title is Executive Secretary. In some missions, all office Elders are considered APs or Assistents to the President, but here there are 2 APs and then 4 office Elders. It seems like a good organization, although I could also see the benefit of having more Assistents that could go out and do divisions or help struggling Elders in their own areas. My work is mostly in preparing all of the legal work for the 140 Elders to stay here in the country, keeping updated documents and information on them, producing media for the mission (DVDs, newsletters, etc), preparing mailing lists, communicating with parents that need help (don´t try to call the office just to talk with me…lol), organizing and assisting with President´s personal schedule, and whatever other task needs to be done. I am also responsible for helping and encouraging the other office Elders to finish their assigned tasks.
I have gotten completely over the disappointment and have begun to see the little miracles—finding the new investigators that we set out to find; being helped to teach them well and prepare them to take important first steps toward a lifetime of covenant-making. I know by experience, by faith, and by the spirit, that those little miracles will lead to the big ones we are promised as missionaries, and especially as office Elders. We are praying and striving to find 3 families and to prepare at least 1 of them for baptism by the end of this change.
I KNOW that Heavenly Father will make it happen through me, and feel overwhelmingly privileged to be that instrument in His hands.

I love you all!

Elder McCarty

Temple: Here is the Stake President from the desert. My 2 companions went through the temple with them to take out their endowments and be sealed for time and all eternity. I just arranged everything...lol.

Baptism: We baptized 8 year old Arami and 9 year old Ricardo last Sunday. We taught them both all of the lessons and it was fun to try to keep it interesting for them and be their friends.

Ostrich: Pretty close to a life-size ostrich. Pretty crazy. Long neck.

Double: Don´t know what this sign was all about, but it was at the zoo, upside down and said ¨Double Meaning,¨ so we took a picture of it.Thrower: We were amazed when he climbed to the top, made tons of noise and then threw bananas at us. We almost got wet when he grabbed some water in his mouth and spit it at us at a pretty amazing distance. When he started throwing poop, we decided to go…lol.