I guess it feels like it's all over, lots of meetings this week and then I come home!

July 27, 2016



Mom and Dad,  
           

 Well today we had an activity as a group, like everyone that goes home with me, and we all were talking about home and stuff like that so I guess now it kind of feels like it's all over. The past week has been pretty normal. Just normal missionary work. This week is the weird week though, with all the final meetings and what not. Friday we go to the temple with the mission president and then it's pretty much over. Yeah that sounds fine, I don't know where to go for lunch though. I'll think about it. Well definitely that first day we are going to have to go buy the Xbox and iPhone. That's a necessity haha. Other than that I don't care what we go do.

From what I've heard I'll still have this email for about two weeks. I'm going to have to go through everything because there are several emails and other stuff that I am going to want to save.  Oh Bryson Walker (Elder Walker) has his homecoming on the 21st of August, so I definitely have to go to it!

 I've been trying to think about some of the foods that I haven't eaten in two years and I really can't think of anything. I think that being home will help me remember a lot of things that I've forgotten haha.

The teaching is going well, we've been having a lot of success lately. We're not going to have a baptism this week but we are going to have one the week after. So I'm not going to be here for it. That's okay though, the important thing is that she is baptized.

Haha yeah the card worked. Yesterday I took out about $60-70. I don't really know how much money it is in dollars so it's approximate.

I think it would be fun to go backpacking. Where would we go?

Well there isn't really much to say this week. I've got a bunch of meetings these next few days, tomorrow I have a self sufficiency thing and Friday we are going to the temple.   Saturday we have several activities as a ward, Sunday is ward conference and Monday is the day I leave. So that's my schedule the next few days. I'll see you guys on Tuesday though! Have a great week!  Love you!

Love,
Elder Stam

Lots of goodbyes

July 20, 2016

                                     

Mom and Dad,

I don't have a lot of time, I've done a lot of goodbyes today haha, sorry. I've already bought a few things. I really don't have any time to buy stuff until next week. My friend from here in Chile should be coming home from his mission around the 20th of May next year and I would love to be there for his homecoming if it is possible. It won't be that hard for me to adjust to the normal life again haha, I've always dealt with change well. The last night in the mission, I will just be in our normal house. In the morning I have to take my suitcases to the office then I have the rest of the day to go do whatever, it's like P Day. Then to the airport.  Yeah she is still progressing. She has a few doubts but I love that because it means that she is actually thinking about it. We will see how things go. It's possible that we have a baptism on the Sunday I leave, not with her though. Well see what happens.

Everything is going well with the your recovery it sounds like, other than that little thing. Heather is going to be a great mom, I'm sure of it.

Well I'll see you here soon I guess. Have a great week and I will write you again next week, for the last time!

Love,
Elder Stam

We better come back here to Chile

July 13, 2016

                                     
                                          

Things are good. I've only visited one person until now but when I'm done writing I'm going to be visiting people all day. Haha I'm pretty sure that I am Facebook friends with most of the people here already, so we will stay in contact. We better come back here, it's a necessity. Haha we're meeting with him Pres Hutchison that late? That's okay haha, more time to be a missionary. So yeah, it looks like I'm going to be home pretty early in the morning. The teaching is going well, it's been pretty normal.

Jeez it really takes that long to recover?? It sounds like they cut you in half and sowed you back together haha. Everything will be fine though.


It's very true though that you never know when you are going to find someone. We kind of had a similar experience. In the morning the other day we were doing contacts and where we were contacting there was nobody that would open the door. It was time to go to lunch so we both kind of wanted to go but we finished the street and the very last house on the street a woman opened the door and told us to come back another day at the same time. So we went back and we are teaching her and she is progressing a lot, I doubt she will be baptized before I go home but you never know.

I remember learning how to make crepes in cooking class. That was a great class haha, it wasn't hard at all. Haha yeah so dad told me that all you have been doing the last few weeks is search for a place for Oma. It sounds like a great area. And when that missionary comes back from Holland Oma can practice her Dutch. And I know that you'll be happy because she will live so close.

Well I'm just happy that I will be there for this niece or nephew haha. Jackson sounds like a typical baby haha, that's awesome that he already has his first tooth. Did it hurt him when it came in?

Wow, lots of money. I get to spend all of that when I come home right? ;) I still need to get a TV to go along with my Xbox. Oh, Saint George would be fun, I love it down there. I've got a few Chilean stuff already, but I think that I'll get a little more. Well I hope that you have a great week! Talk to you next week.

Love,
Elder Stam

God is still a God of miracles.

July 6, 2016

Mom,                     

Elder Stam likes Noni fruit

                 
I'm doing well. Susan is a less active that we have been working with a little bit. They were already working with her a lot before I came to the sector. They closed a sector here and now Elder Brown and I have the whole sector. They were teaching her before. So I haven't really worked with her a whole lot but she's really cool. We took her to the temple last Saturday because this guy in our ward was getting sealed. She was a little sad that she couldn't go inside to see it and so she wants to go back to the church so that she could go in the temple. She's pretty young, I would say 35, but I'm not exactly sure. We have our own bikes now so we can use them whenever we want. President Gwilliams is a great guy. We had a little getting to know him conference on Saturday and I had a little interview with him. And today for P Day we went to his house and spent the day with him. He's super awesome. He's still learning a lot though, a little lost with a few things but he's really excited to be here. He's really humble and I think that he is going to have a lot of success. So I've gotten mad at the office elder, don't worry, I'm friends with him and he send he would send the flight plans as soon as possible. He forgot to send them to me and you. I'll be getting home the 2nd of August, around 10:30 A.M. Haha I don't know what I want to do mom, that's for you to decide. I don't really care about lunch, somewhere that's good. Maybe Cafe Rio. And yes I still want Papa Murphys for dinner.

Good, keep reading. I'm almost positive that cancer is one of the plagues that God said he would send in the last days. Well God is still a God of miracles, Mormon 9 is one of my favorite chapters in the Book of Mormon, so just keep having faith and everything is possible to him.

Does IHOP still have the Nutella crepes?? So when exactly is Oma going to be all moved in? Haha you two are great moral support for each other then. Well from what Dad has told me, you are spending a lot of time looking for a place for her to stay. And knowing you, you always are really dedicated to stuff like this so I know that you are going to find a place here in no time. The 4th of July for us was pretty lame, absolutely nothing different happened. I did wear an American flag tie though.

Mom, you worry too much. The people here would never shoot at missionaries. They respect us a ton. They just shoot in the air. It really doesn't make sense, I think that they just think that they're the coolest for having a gun.

Yes I'll keep working hard. It makes absolutely no sense at all to slow down now. But thanks for the email, I hope that you have a great week. Oh by the way, the next two weeks I have to go around to my old sectors to say goodbye to the people so I might not have a whole lot of time to write, just so you know. Also, you're gonna need to set up a dentist appointment because I am sure that I have a couple of cavities. At least one for sure. They eat straight junk here, I've honestly been doing a good job at keeping my teeth clean.

Love,
Elder Stam

The key to a lot of success on a mission is to just love the people

June 29, 2016

Mom,                       

Elder Smith and Elder Stam

                               
It's okay. My illness was pretty miserable while it lasted, but it's pretty much passed now. I was running around a lot today playing soccer and I was still feeling it a little bit, but it's pretty much gone now. Other than that, things have been going pretty well. We get bicicles today, which is pretty awesome. Maybe I'll lose a little bit more fat before I come home haha. My companion has been out on his mission about a year. It's been good with him, we have a ton of people to teach now, we have all of his investigators and now all of ours. So things have been great this last week. Yeah, Pres and Sis Cook left. They should be home by now. I met the new president for about 5 seconds, so not really. We do have a zone conference with him Saturday, and I am going to need a temple recommend interview here soon, so there I will get to know him a little bit more. Yes I do have the flight plans. I should be landing in Utah at 10:30 AM, pretty early. I am also going to Atlanta though so we never know. But as of now, that's the plan. Speaking of that, a lot of people have asked me and I am a little curious of what we are going to do that day. So if you want to send me the schedule of the day that would be great haha.

Make sure you keep reading the scriptures haha. I am now reading in the book of Leviticus and it's not the funnest. It has some great symbolism though. I'm understanding a lot more of what I'm reading now. Haha mom you've always been hot anyways. You're always fanning yourself with some paper or whatever you have. So it's probably just normal. But you're completely right, trial brings blessing. I think the key to a lot of success on a mission is to just love the people, and show them that you love them. Heather will be fine also, we've all been sick recently it sounds like.

        
The weather here has been pretty bipolar. It's been pretty warm during the day. Yesterday it was like 83 degrees or somewhere near that. But when the sun goes down, it gets really cold. And today it is cold. So it's strange. You've already hit 100 though huh? That's crazy hot. Speaking of food, is there a kind of squash there that is called zapallo, or something similar to that? The use is a lot here in the food, and I kind of want to learn how to make Chilean food. 

It was pretty crazy that Chile won again. It was pretty much a repeat of last year. President didn't give us permission to watch it this year, but an investigator showed us the penalty shots. It was pretty crazy. The country did go crazy again, they think they're the coolest people in the world now haha. There were several gunshots right in front of our house, just a lot of dumb things the people do. Yes, I'm excited for the olympics. I thought they started before I came home so I'm glad I won't be missing any of it. I'm sure it's been pretty stressful for Oma but we all know that she is going to love it there in Utah. She might not like the snow, but that's okay haha. What kind of things am I going to need for college? I tried to use the debit card but I think that the pin number is different. Is it the four digit number that was on the letter? If not you'll have to email it to me. I think that if I try it again and it's wrong, then they'll block the card. I've been thinking about a few souvenirs but I'm still not sure haha. At least we'll be coming back here, so if there's anything I miss we can get it next year. Are we still planning on coming back in May? I need to take more photos, I've been lacking in that lately, I'll see if I have anything that I could send.

Dude, the mission dog

Well thanks for the email, if there's anything you need from me just let me know. I love you and thanks for all the support and love. I hope that you keep getting better and that everything goes well.

Love,
Elder Stam