Disfrute el Tiempo que Tenemos.

It is always hard to think about what I want to write, there is always do much, and I only have so much time as well So I guess I shall just give a review on this amazing week!

First of all, this week flew by so fast! It started on Monday with our 4 Pday of the month, and due to various reasons we were all out of money, only having like 4 mil to the each of us, and since it is about three mil to get to our Clase de Districto on Tuesday we were reluctant to use any money at all! So we were without money to buy food, and all other ¨necesities´ and so after talking it over the hermanas in our sector of Quillon invited us to have lunch with them, compromising to buy us lunch if we payed for them the next week (today) and so we agreed! Well the hermanas invited us to an activity with a senior couple called The Pulisifers and said that dos(2) other hermanas were going to be there as well. Well when we got to our destination where we wanted to have lunch, once there we found out that the reunion was meant to be for a get together of all the hermanas in ¨Chillan¨, thus it was doce(12) hermanas and not dos, and the Pulsifers were not even there! Well we invited a few more Elders and all was good. 

Then on Tuesday I had a mini cambio with Elder Jackson, since in his sector he had 2 people that were to be baptized and thus they needed to be interviewed by my companion. Our cambio was a blast, Elder Jackson first started his mission in my sector but knew about no Spanish so this cambio he was able to visit all of his converts and menos activos with a whole new idioma! 

On Wednesday I had a mini cambio with Elder Ramirez, the traveling assistant, who happens to be such a great missionary! I was a little on edge since it was basically a minicambio to test me on my work habits, lessons, contacts, and all the such, so at first I was a little enxious to work with him, but after a little while, he told me that he was here to aid me in my work, teach me new things, and help me fix that which I lacked. Well the day went by and we had so many good lessons, met so many people, and if I learned anything out of the whole cambio, it is that we need to ¨walk tall¨ in our work. Have pride in what we do, no matter what it is! The same night I had planned a Noche de Hogar with one of the member families in our ward, and after not being able to share the planned lesson we had prepared since the Tv they had didn´t work, I shared a lesson about Faith. If we have faith as little as a seed we can work miracles, and out of all the miracles we have in our lives we need to be thankful fot the little things as well as the great ones in our live, and we can show our gratitude by: being obedient to the commandments, all of them, and by being obedient we are blessed with more miracles, and so it is a circle in this life, that all starts with Faith, and everything else flows into place! It was a great night, we had food, they members were happy to see my new companion for a day, and also E Ramirez having worked in my sector earlier in his mission wanted to we visit some of his converts too!

After a straight work, on Thursday we had our Noche de Hogar for the Rama. Basically what the whole night was about, was to edify the testimonies of the members and to share a little more about the Libro de Mormon! it was great, everyone had a good time, and like all good activities we had food after!

We were in Florida yesterday, to contact, to teach, and open the unknown part of our sector. Well, if I say one thing, it was almost the best experience in the mission! All were humble and nice people, the work was great, we were able to pass into peoples home and share a little, which never happens in any other sector, and we met many more people that want us to meet with them! Only one little problem, and that is the transportation. It is like 30 minutes or so in a bus to get there and the last one leaves Florida to Quillon at 8:30 so we can not get our full time of the day working there, and it is also a pain to get there, and even more to bring people to church all the way to Quillon. But the people there are literally waiting for us! What made it the best was not ever an experience of mine it was of the hermanas that came with us. The story goes like this: They were contacting the in the street to find people to teach and they came across a man that litterally had been humbled to his knees. His father had just recently passed away, and his 9 year old son had died 4 months back. He had lost his job, and his wife wanted to divorce him. The man had been trying to kill himself for about 3 weeks, and was on the way to buy a drink at the bar, and had planned to end his life after. Well our hermanas talked to him and taught him there in the street, they invited him to read a little about the Plan of Salvacion, and invited him to let them return. After he accepted and gave the dirrection of his wife, which the hermanas taught as well and she accepted to meet with them as well. I do not know the extent of how touching it was for our sisters, but when we reunited at the bus stop and I asked them how was Florida, Hermana Ruiz started crying and thanked my for convicing us to work in Florida. I enjoyed the experience very much, and hope to return this Sunday.

One thing that I noticed today, is that I have a little more pep in my step, I am a little more excited to work, I guess I must have lost that desire to work that I had first started with. And so one thing that I invite everyone to do, as well as myself is to Disfrute el Tiempo que Tenemos (Enjoy the time that we have).Don´t ever forget that everyday we have is a gift, that is why they call it the present right! Enjoy what we have, what we used to have, and what we will have. Enjoy our lives, our families, our jobs, our callings, everything. We don´t have time to be sad!

I am thankful for everyone at home, and here in Chile. The mission is so awesome, and amazing, and astounding! Hope all is well!

Con Amor,

Elder Siaosi

Pictures in Florida and the second cutest girl ever

Just a few Libro de Mormones fotos

Ups and Downs

To the Ones I love,

This past week was another one of those super busy weeks, filled with conferences, minicambios, and a bunch of other reunions! Monday my companion had to leave with another Elder in our house, Elder Barrios who is now a lider de Districto so I was in Quillon with Elder Mills, to which all we had was a Noche de Hogar with some of Elder Mills Menos Activos. It was a bit interesting since I was the one leading the meeting and did not really know his peeps. We had our  interviews with the President, one every three months this past Tuesday and everything is going great with our mission! Also, was able to talk to him and we finally have real beds in our house!  Whooooo! To be honest, we really were not able to work all that much this week due to a already filled agenda!

In between the times where we were not having reunions, and were able to work, and with our work both good and the bad seem to show themselves. Starting with the bad, Elder Bueno and I had a mother and her two kids with fecha to be baptized, they were golden, having been taught by the missionaries about 10 years back, all these feelings of the spirit came back into her life and she was ready to be baptized then and there and wanted her kids to be baptized too, and so the second time we returned to talk to her she had completely changed, now she was a little depressed, and though still wanted to talk to us, told us that after talking to her husband, we were not allowed to return, mainly being because when the other missionaries were at her house, they would visit her everyday, and often times took away her time with the family and her husband. WHAT A LETDOWN!!!! And so after that we left her house to contact another one of the people we taught, and to our surprise one of the members of the branch was at her house! And so we were able to pass in and teach them with the member and now we have two other invests, Rita y Ignacio! They have been to church twice and love it! So just like in life, the mission has its ups and downs, and sometimes it changes drastically fast! All we can do is just keep on keeping on right! 

One scripture I love is in Mosiah 4:9. In our life so must flys by as each and every day progresses. One thing that I have been promted to share with almost all of the miembros of the church is that we have spiritual highes and lowes. And many times the highes are much much fewer than the spiritual experiences in our lives, but if we think back to the day we became converted into the church, and the day we were baptized, and the day we had our first child, and any other high we were priviledged to recieve, and remember how we felt and what it was, that the times that are harder in our lives may become easier for we can remember. Remember what we knew then, and know now. 

 9 Believe in ^aGod; believe that he is, and that he ^bcreated allthings, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all^cwisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not ^dcomprehend all the things which the Lord cancomprehend.

And many times we may not even understand what and why things happen in our lives. But if we remember the moments that matter the most. Our lives will have more meaning and be much easier filled with more happiness and tranquility.

I am grateful for everyone in my life, and wish the best!

Con Cariño,

Elder Siaosi

The first few are pictures with me and my companion with a sweet sunset in Quillon, the ones after are of a lunch with some other fellow missionaries, and the last is a foto in front of the well known site of the Catholics, it is beautiful!

Pictures of Luchito from last Saturday

Obedience Without a Reason

Dear Friends and Family,

First things first, my new companion is only 27! And to make things better he only have 10 weeks left in the mission. A little more truth about my companion: though he is almost a nazi when it comes to following the rules exactly, he has a good heart when it comes to being obedient. He has a desire to recieve the blessings from being odedient! One thing I though that he does have, or does not have, is no patience with anything! But were he lacks in patience he makes up for in experience! He is an excellent teacher, knows the doctrine, and desires to get the people of Chile back to church and into the waters of baptism!

Speaking of Baptism, with almost all of the work from Elder Miranda and with the support of Elder Bueno, we were able to get two souls into the saving waters of baptism, and it was absolutely amazing! Also they, Luis and Luchito had asked me to do the ordinances! I was so nervous and at the same time excited! It may be the best experience ever! To bring someone closer to God! 

Well I actually have to go, a member asked us to help her with a blessing for the sick! Entoces must go!

Till next week! Chao!

E´ Siaosi

En Sábado tenia mi segundo Bautismal con Luis Talavera aka Luchito! Su Confirmación fue en Domingo!

 En Domingo tenia mi tercera bautismal con Luis Caceres aka Luis Loco porque tiene una casa loca!

The First of Many (14)

Officially, as of today, have been out in the mission field for 2 cambios, and as the new cambio comes, my old companion leaves! After 3 longs months, I am getting a new companion. Tomorrow I meet him in the city Chillan at the bus stops. I have ever met him, but I have heard a few things about him from other Elders, for one, he is 38 years old!!!!!!!!!! And he is Elder Hitler when it comes to everything, which for the most part is a good trait, but with the wrong attitude it creates very bad relations. But we shall see, we have 2 baptisms planned for this weekend, so fingers crossed for that! 

This past week has been quite different than most, and in such was a little fome(bad) in somesorts but great in others. On Monday we had our reunion in Chillan, so we did not have any time to get any work done. On Tuesday we had a noche de hogar and a reunion con the Branch mission leader so not much to get done there. On Wednesday we had our one full day of work! On Thursday we had a conference with Member of the 70, named Elder Jorge Zeballos.

The Conference was great! One thing that I really enjoy from the conference was a story about Elder Zeballos and his children. He talked about how he lived near the beach, by that nearby were a group of small mountains. Well one week his children asked him to climb the highest of the mountains with them. Well on the Saturday they looked to see which mountain was the highest, and after left on a trial to head to the top. After a few hours they reached the top, and to there surprise they saw a mountain even higher! And so, the kids asked to climb that higher mountain that they had not seen from the base. So the next Saturday off they went, and after the whole day they reached the top, and cound see as far at the horizon went on the side facing the ocean, but once again there was a higher mountain, which they had not seen before on the summit of the other mountain.The story went on but in the end he wrapped it up be describing what we consider to be our best. How we put constrictions, or walls, on what we consider to be ¨our best.¨ However, these restrictions are limited to our own knowledge. The phrase, give your 100 and 10 percent, connects to this story. We can achieve the wall we have set to be our best, but once we reach that point it is then that we see, that we have a little more to give. Just as we could not see the higher mountain on the other side from the base, until we reach for our best, we will not know our own potencial!

After the conference my companion and I worked in one of our districts sectors because we had 2 interviews for peeps about to get baptised. We ended making it back in Quilon around 8:30, just in time to play futbal with the Priesthood Holders at 9! On Friday we spent the whole day preparing for an activity we had, named El Gran Sueno, or The Great Dream.

El Gran Sueño: An activity we had this week that consisted of first of all inviting all of the members into the chapel and opening the activity with hymn and prayer, followed by presenting how we were then going to lead people. one by one, blindfolded down the halls of the church. While they were walking we gave them a tight rope to hold onto as they walked to give them some source of direction. During their walk we had different rooms opened with people playing music, cooking french fries, sounds of a futbol game on tv, dancing and singing, all that good stuff, and people were tempting them to come and particiapte and partake. Well at the end of the rope led to a well lit tree with decorations, and lights, and golden apples, and was just a spectacular vision to see! If the people made it to the end of the rope they were un-blindfolded, and given a fruit (papermade) and told to wait in their seats, which we had set up. Once everyone had gone, we brought them around the tree explained that our activity was the represent the Dream of Lehi. After we had a festival con deserts, we asked every member to bring a desert of their choice, I made s´more and everyone was freaking out because they loved them so much and it was their first time partaking of such glory! Overall, great activity!!

Saturday we had another reunion and finally we hit Sunday, and Sundays are always filled with planning, studying, and contacting. Overall, the week went well, but we only worked about a third of the time that we usually do so our progression wasn´t as high as we had hoped, but! with the new cambioand the line up of investigators the future is looking well! Spend most of the morning helping my companion pack, though often times he did get on my nerves, I am going to miss Elder Miranda! Everytime I wonder how can anyone create a relationship in just a few short months, I remember that I have been with him constantly, always having him within sight, basically. I hope that the next companion is a good one, I see why it is important to have a companion in marriage that you would always like being around, because like on the mission you can not just leave when you aren´t getting along, but it will be a long time if you don´t like your companion!

Hope all is well, I am missing everyone!

Con Cariño.

Elder Jacob Siaosi

A few pictures from the Conference this week with Elder Zeballos.

It´s that time of the cambio again.

Those close to my heart,

This past week flew by. It feels like yesturday that I was writing home. And now that I think of it I felt like I was getting set apart yesturday, but again, it feels like I was in High School last week so I guess the time changes make sense. Everytime I write home, I wish to be back, if just to see everyone, see the places I miss, and to feel at home. But at the same time, there is no other place I would rather be. This coming week we have another cambio, so I am enxious to find out if I am leaving or getting a new companion here!

This past Tuesday I was on a mini cambio here in Quillon with the other Elders in our casa. One experience that was very special and we both felt like it was inspired. As we were making our way house to house contacting till we eventually made it to the less active we wanted to teach we came upon a split in the road. And it was basically a paved road to the right, which we needed to go down to reach our less active, and the other was a dirt road that was shade-covered with trees. We stopped at the path and waited, we both felt like we ought to go down the dirt road and see where it led. And so we did, and about every 75 yards or so there was a house, many run down without people living in them. And after we reace the end, about 20 minutes later we came to house that had smoke coming from the chimney. We both thought that we might as well contact the house since wehad no luck with the others and we went this far. So we walked up called out ¨Alo¨and waited for abot 5 minutes, to which a woman walked out and said ¨pasen¨ with just means, pass in, and went around the house to see a man with a huge ax cutting wood. She told us to sit down and we talked and ended up teaching her and her husband about the doctrines of Christ, Faith, Repentance, Bautism, the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Perseverar Hasta al Fin. After which, they not having said a word went into their house and brought our a Libro de Mormon and told us a story. Of how about 20 years ago a set of Sister missionaries came by and taught them, served them, and the famiy had a bond with the sisters, but one day they came by an said that they had to leave but that Elders would return to teach you. Well the times past and no one ever came, and eventually they thought that they had been forgotten, until one day we showed up. After she finished the story we talked about how sometimes God works in mysterious ways, for we did not know to come here or that you were ever waiting. Well after a while we told them we had to leave but that we would visit them in Thursday. After as E´ Barrios and I were walking back we felt so good! This is why I came right! It is experiences like this that makes me stoked for the future!

The rest of the week was a little rough, we had lunches with members twice in the same week, which were about 15 minutes to travel to by car, had way ot many reunions, and spent too much time in visits. But I guess everything has it´s ups and down, just make sure you keep your mind on the positive side, and remember those short moments of bliss to keep you moving forward.

Time is short once again, but iftime keeps moving this fast, I will be writing to you again tomorrow. Hope the best for all at home. Que Dios nos bendiga con salud y trabajo exitoso. Les amo!

Con Amor,

E´ Siaosi




Some more pictures of the joys of Chile. We had a cancelled service project so we decided to spend a few minutes at the playground. 

A passalong card that went wrong.

The metal animals about 25 minutes north of my city on a road that goes forever. We have two roads in our secotr that go on for about 30 miles. 

And lastely, the best quality of food I have had since I got to chile, it was fried mahi mahi, with alfredo sauce and some noodles. We also had soup, bread, fruit, and other unidentifiable meat.