Hi
momzee, how are you doing today?!
Wow, so
let me just start off today by a saying that I did get transferred! I am
in Pamplona right now with my good friend and Elder, Elder Eiguren! We are
from the same group (from the MTC)! It's really funny because we said we were
going to be companions someday in the mission and now here we are! Haha! We are
super excited and pumped to get working here in Pamplona. From what I know, we
have a baptism this week, the ward that I am in, Pamplona 1A is the ward where **la
mujer de uno de mis maestros en el CCM, SUS padres están allí, muy
interesante. ¡Y porque Pamplona está en el misma estaca de Logroño, veré las
personas de Logroño en dos semanas porque tendremos conferencia de estaca en
Bilbao! Super fun!
Translation**the parents of the wife/girlfriend
of one of my teachers in the MTC are here (in my area), very interesting. And because Pamplona is in the same stake as Logroño,
I will see the people from Logroño in two weeks because we will have a stake
conference in Bilbao! Super fun!
Leaving
Logroño was a bit hard for me. I did everything I could to fix my mistakes from
last transfer and worked hard with the members. I gave my sweat and blood there
to redeem myself and work hard for the members and for the Lord as well. Being
with Elder Chin Ah You was great and we had lots of fun. Sometimes it was hard
but that's expected in every relationship. Es lo que hay. ¡Haha! I am so pumped
to be with Elder Eiguren, you all have no idea! Now there are 3 Elders who have
served from our group here. Me, Elder Eiguren, and Elder Phillips who started
here.
Miracles
from the week. Well, one was the Noche De Hogar that we had at the church
Sunday night. It actually turned out to be my despedida (farewell). I
personally didn't think I deserved one, but I guess the members did which shows
that they accepted my service there, despite the mistakes I made. Man, I love
Logroño so much. I really didnt to begin with but now, I don't want to leave. I
would sacrifice myself for those members there. Would I live there? No, I like
the state's too much(haha), but I would give everything I have for them.
Another
miracle was again on Sunday. I was asked to give a talk! It was about whatever
I wanted, so I naturally chose missionary work. I was going to be the first or
second speaker, but then they changed and had me go last. So, I was to give a 10
minute talk. But by the end of the first two speakers and the intermediate
hymn, I had 20 minutes left to take up! I thought I was going to die. But I did
it and I almost gave a 30 minute talk, IN SPANISH!!! Wow, the Lord does answer
prayers and works though the week and simple. I remember when I said that I was
leaving at the end of my talk, all the heads of the congregation turned up, or
at least the ones that weren't looking at me. I cried when giving my testimony.
Man, I loved Logroño more than I thought. Did we get baptisms? No, but we sure
did work and testify in the name of the Lord. Definitely come back.
Interesting
things have occurred during my time in Logroño. I will list them out. The first was getting
attacked my first day, then running in to him again later that evening. The
second thing is getting yelled at, and seeing the man's disgust for us. The
next thing was giving besos to a recent converts sister, well, her mother, but
not to her. I will explain that soon. Then, getting stopped by a homeless man,
who then pulled us in to his shoulders, prayed with us, and then kissed us on
the cheeks. So yeah, good things.
Now the
besos story. I named an email Besos a while back without explaining why. We met
with a recent convert because we had all of the new area. Her sister came in
and naturally came in for besos as is the culture (kissing on both cheeks).
Well I was surprised and before I could say “no”, I was rubbing cheeks with a Spaniard! The next time, we passed by, only her mother
was there. After shaking hands with my companion first, I shook hands with her,
and when she shook my hand, she pulled my arm and said, "Dame besos
cariño." (Give me kisses honey). Yep,
I'm a lady killer. Then on Sunday night, everyone was leaving and we brought *J*,
the recent convert, with us. Well, as I was saying goodbye, I gave her a
handshake, and realizing that I, a guapotone, (majorly handsome guy) would be
leaving her, she tried to give me besos as well, but I finally got it down and
said that we can't do it because we are missionaries. Hahahaha! But all that is
over now. Chapter 14 Flirt to Convert. Not canonized by anyone. Don't do it.
It's false doctrine and only bad things come from it. Jesus Christ says
so. Hahaha!
I guess
that's mostly it. Not too much else to write I think. Well there probably is, I
just can remember any of it, lol. I guess I'll leave you all with a revelation
that I received when writing my talk. We have all read in the scriptures, that
we will dwell in the mansions of the Father as we prove faithful to Him and
endure to the end. Then we read in D&C 76:111: That we shall be judged by
our works, receive according to our works, the places which are prepared for
us. Then the scriptures say that Jesus Christ has built mansions for us. So,
the revelation that I recieved was this, …We are the tools in the Savior’s
hands. We can choose to keep God's commandments and hold together in the Lord’s
hands, or we can choose to break God's commandments and not be the hands of the
Lord. We are the ones who decide if we live in a mansion, or a shack. To me it
was very profound and insightful on the decisions I make and do.
I am glad
that you enjoyed the letters that I sent. I tried to get them there by
Valentine's day to show my love for you all and make it extra special. Also, I
felt that you all could use them. 😉 And I believe I recognized
a My Little Pony stuffed animal over there (in Isabella’s room). Her name is
Rainbow Dash, and just to show that I am an expert in this category. She is a
Pegasus because she only has wings. There are 3 main types of ponies. Earth
ponies, which are just regular horses. The Pegasus, (sky ponies), and the
unicorns, which use magic. There is the rare Alicorns, which have wings and a
horn, but they are rarer and are more royalty side. I could give more facts
about rainbow dash, but I'll leave you all with that for now. Am I a Brony?
Some might classify me as such. I like to think of myself as a My Little Pony
expert. Hahahaha!
Anyway, I
love you all super lotta much and I can't wait to see you all again!!!! Love
you forever and keep the faith!!!
Love
Elder Maybury
My despedida from Logroño
Some pics of me with some great families and members in Logroño.
I absolutely love these people.
We had a great district of Elders in Logroño.
Yes, we miss the wonderful hermanas who were here before.
This was our attempt to make a cake. "A" for effort..."F" for taste! 😂
I will miss my companion - Elder Chin Ah Yu
My new companion and great friend from the CCM...Elder Eiguren!
He's tall :)
On the bus to Pamplona...enjoying some cookies!
I love you all!
If he is in Pamplona for 4 transfers, he will be there during the running of the bulls. Of course, missionaries can observe from safe places (balconies, etc), but they are never allowed to participate. What a wonderful cultural experience it could be. I don't know if he will last there for 4 transfers, as most Elders are transferred after 3...but, you never know!
In this email exchange that I had with him, I could tell he was happy. It is a wonderful thing to know your children are happy. I know last week was hard for him, but it is wonderful to see him bounce back and find the good in the experiences he is having. There are rare occasions where I will be online at the same time as him and we can email back and forth, and this week was one of those weeks. He made me laugh so many times. Especially when he told me about the cake that he and his companion tried to make. I remember when his father also made a cake while on his mission. Again, I would say the scorecard was "A" for effort and "F" for taste, especially since the cake wasn't cooked in the middle. 😂😂😂 I LOVE that he tried, though!
I also know that my son loves his time as a missionary. I know that he loves the gospel and the work that he does every day. I know that he is learning and growing so much on a mission - more than he could have done here at home. I know that he loves the people that he serves. I know that he loves his companions. I know that he loves his family. And I know that he loves his Savior.
His birthday is in just 13 days. This will be his first birthday away from me. I will be unable to hug him. I will be unable to shake him for his "birthday minute" (he is usually asleep at the time ). It will be hard, since our birthdays are just 3 days apart, I like to have lunch with him. Sigh.
As a mother, the job requirement is sacrifice, almost from the beginning and while it is a sacrifice to have my son so far away from home and his siblings, how could I ever deny him this opportunity to learn and grow as a student of the Lord? It is a sacrifice that I gladly make for HIS benefit. When I can see his happy face, or hear it in his words, then I know it is all worth it.
Onward and upward!
As always, thank you for supporting our son in whatever way you do. As a family, we feel it. As a missionary, I know he feels it. If you would like to write to him, please do so at this address:
Elder Alexander J. Maybury
Spain Barcelona Mission
C/ Calatrava 10-12, bajos
08017 Barcelona
Spain
All letters and cards require one international stamp = $1.15 (up to one ounce)
Reminder: His birthday is March 7th. If you get a card in the mail THIS WEEKEND, it might still make it to him by his Zone Conference date of March 9th (the only time he gets mail).
Note: I will no longer be posting the names of investigators, recent baptisms/converts or members, as a safety measure.
Emailed on February 20th
