March 5, 2012

Good After-noon Family, How has your week gone? I am sorry that you have come down with the cold. I know it is never fun, especially when there are so many other things that I would prefer to do in place of "moping around". (to quote my father) I wish you well, and hope that you get better soon. Just know, you are in good hands. I say that referring to Jackie. She is such a motherly little girl. It is so sweet. Oh, and thank you very much for the package. HOLY COW! I could not believe that such great a quantity of candy could fit in one packaging box. My companion, Elder Garcia and I, are going to get sick over the course of the next week for having eaten so much candy... and we are going to enjoy every minute of it! And for the dry fruit,... well... all I can say is that I love you so very much. I really do. It was quite funny, because I realized how well you know me, based on the contents of the box. (example: spam, skinny green tie, reeses, butter-finger, the book, the little bug, and the dried fruit) Well, I will proceed to give you an account of my dealings upon the face of the land of Mazatlan during the course of this last week. First off, my companion IS AWESOME!!! He really is so great. I get along fantastically with him. He has the "lets serve people" attitude, which is something that we share. It is like a competition in every meal. We eat at top speed to see who can finish first, and wash the dishes. (the Hermanas in the ward just love us! haha) Oh, and guess what,... He taught me how to put together the rubic-cube in one day. That was like one of the mysteries of the universe, and he just unraveled it right before my eyes. So, besides the fact that I get along really great with him, also we have seen a great quantity of miracles this week. The grandest miracle that we saw was yesterday at the church. We had worked all week with a lady named Maria, teaching her, and inviting her to come to the church. So, come Sunday, we decided that we would go to her house, and bring her to church with us. When we got there, she was ready and prepared to go to church with us. So we brought her to church. When we got there, the most amazing thing happened. She sat down, and then after a few moments, she commented to us that her brother was here. We exchanged glances, thinking "well of course, we are all brothers and sister here", and then asked her "where is he". She then got up, and proceeded to go up the the front of the chapel, and sat down next to an elderly man. He was stunned and amazed, for it truly was his sister. And our shock surpassed all else. She had never once commented to us that her brother was a member of the church, or that he even lived in this area. It really was a beautiful experience for everyone involved. When she left, she told us that she definitely would come to church the next week. She told us that is just felt good. Oh, I love this work. Well, there are so many things that I wish to tell you, including how I played the piano for the first time in sacrament meeting. (I was scared stiff) (I am not kidding) (I could not believe myself that I had gotten up and just did it). I'll tell you, in some ways I have quite changed over the course of this past year, but inside I'm the same old silly boy who blurts out "but your stupid" at the dinner table. I have gained a great amount of appreciation for you all this past week, while I have been with Elder Garicia. You see, he is an only child, and so he really has taught me much about the blessing it is to have siblings, and parents. I love you all so much. I pray for you often. "Hold down the fort" Love, Elder Johnson p.s. Jackie I love you. Thank you so much for the Zebra. It really is so adorable. Every time I see it, I will think of you.