Gratitude; Domingo Maravilloso; e Os Elegidos

Hello, my peoples! Happy Thanksgiving! I am honestly sooo grateful for all the blessings my Father in Heaven has given me, and for the opportunity to be here in this wonderful part of the Lord's vineyard serving my Uruguayan brothers and sisters. I am thankful for the blessings my family has received while Christian and I have been away. And above all, I am sooo grateful to be a child of God with the destiny to become like Him and have all that He has. How blessed we all are, and I invite you all to find some quiet time to consider and count your blessings this Thanksgiving Day. You will be overwhelmed as I am.

This morning, we had a Turkey Bowl with the mission president of the West mission - Presidente Olsen - as well as his family and his office Elders. Such a fun time; everyone was balling up, laughing and having a good time. (I'll send pics next week; I didn't take any, but President Olsen and Hermana Eddy did). In a bit, we are going to have Thanksgiving lunch at the Eddy's home; STOKED!

Domingo Maravilloso (Wonderful Sunday): This past Sunday was honestly the best Sunday I've had in the entire mission. For one, Virginia V was confirmed a member of the Church, and her entire family came once again to support her. What's more, they LOVED the service! Adriana came once again this week even though we didn't have a charla with her throughout the week! And a man named Daniel, whom we met while he was taking care of a less active's house and who lives in a different area, came to our church as well! This was huge for the Elders in 18 de Mayo, Las Piedras, because they have a baptismal date with him for the 9th of December, but hadn't had contact with him, and had he not attended, the date would've fallen and they would have dropped him. We called them during weekly planning to give them the good news, and they were ECSTATIC! Daniel asked us to teach him as well and we set a charla for Friday and now are sharing the teaching load with the other Elders. Excited to see what happens!

Os Elegidos (The Chosen): I have been reading Member Missionary Work & Finding the Elect of God (Scott Marshall) this week and have been trying to apply his techniques. On Tuesday, I had an intercambio with Manzie (finally! after 15 whole months!) and our charla fell through, so we decided to look positively and relentlessly for the elect. We saw ahead on the sidewalk this young couple with a baby stroller, and at first I felt hesitant, but I took the resolve to start talking with them, and we had the most comfortable and friendly contact EVER! They accepted wholeheartedly to have a charla the next day and learn about the gospel, and when I checked up the next day, I learned that Nicolás and Katy (them) have a baptismal date for the 13th of January! (still need to get married) Super big testimony builder that the elect are out there, and we just need to find them!

Short on time, but I'm soo grateful as well for all of you in my life, and I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving! ¡Feliz Día de Acción de Gracias! (Happy Thanksgiving Day!)

Con amor,

Élder Newman :)

Hey Mom! Glad to see that you, the Hollands, and Manzanares' had such a great time and got along so well. Let me know when the Hollands get their country assignment! Sure jealous of the Rancheritos.  Peacocks and cougars! Dang, sure getting a lot of nature in the neighborhood recently! Tell Sara Hamson hi from me! Love you tons!

Hey Pap! Super cool that you got to meet Pappa Manzie and Brother Holland. Some sweet looking Christmas lights for sure! #ItsBeginningToLookALotLikeChristmas Love you.

BEAR! Super stoked for the Ragnarok movie someday! Glad you enjoyed it. Today's Turkey Bowl was just what I needed as well; I felt soooo good to be running around tossing a pigskin after so long. Tell all the cousins hi for me! Love you so much!

Emmr! An iPhone! In the Newman family! Wow, the Berlin Wall's coming down all over again! Thor Ragnarok sounds like the perfect mix of comedy and action. All A's, nice job! Haha good luck with Caleb! Con amor, Élder Oldman

Callerist! Yes, my foot is very much better. Thank you for asking and caring about me!  I sure do miss pie... hopefully we'll have some with the Eddys! Love you tons!

Mom’s Questions:

1. Are you having a Turkey Bowl tomorrow?

We just had it in the morning against the West mission! Close game, but we probably won (no score kept, of course) and I had a pair of TD's. Super fun!

2. What was your favorite scripture you read this week? What scriptures have you been studying this week?

Alma 4:15. It is a great reminder and huge comfort when things get tough in the mish. This week I've been applying the Christ Study exercise from Elder Nelson (currently on the Divine Sonship of Christ) and also the war chapters of the Book of Mormon! There's a lot of great hidden lessons in there for sure!

3. Have you and Elder Manzaneras had any opportunities to sing together at church or baptisms?

Yup! This past Sunday, all the Elders and our DOM (Director de la Obra Misional, or Ward Mission Leader) sang himno 88: Placentero Nos Es Trabajar, acapella version. No, it's not in the English hymnbook, but it was awesome, and I will send you a video next week that we took Saturday night during Correlations.

4. What exercise have you been doing lately?

Running; jump ropes and body exercises, WEIGHTS! (not official ones, but the best I've seen in a missionary house); etc.

5. Are you making your bed? :)

Yes, ma'am! :)

What the Hail; Pizza en la Medianoche; e Perfeito em Absoluto

 Zone Pic

 Virginia's Baptism 

 Virginia's Family Came to Support Her

P-day Lunch with the Eddy's

Friends and family! What a week! Quite the roller coaster for sure, but it ended on the highest note possible, so I'm super happy. Got lots of great emails from you all this week, and thanks for your support!

Perfeito em Absoluto (Absolute Perfection): Virginia Vodanovich was baptized yesterday, and considering the conflicting circumstances that were going on throughout the week (conflicts with schedules, etc), it literally could not have turned out better; there was a great showing of people, including her entire family and Virginia Añón (our convert of one week who is working on her family tree!). I believe that was what the rest of the family needed to feel the Spirit and desire to follow this path; we will see going forward!

What the Hail: So, it hailed on Wednesday. And, that never happens in Uruguay. Like, ever. So we were freaking out a little bit.

Pizza en La Medianoche (Pizza at Midnight): On Monday, we had to go move all the stuff out of the Wankiers' apartment so that we could close the contract and get the house out of our hands. It ended up being over a 6 hour project that took from 5:30 in the afternoon until midnight, and so we celebrated our hard work with pizza. At midnight.

With that mudanza de los Wankiers (moving of the Wankiers), all the multi-zone conferences in this first week, and other stuff, we got very little time in our areas this week to work, and this week was a little tough; we were rejected quite a bit. But we learned and cultivated patience and greater diligence and were able to find Julio, who is a man of few words, angry (at the moment) with Christ, but open to read the BoM and learn more.  I truly am loving Malvín; what a great place to be.

We office elders also got to play basketball and touch football with the Eddy family before lunch today, and it was super fun; we all played really well and had a blast. For some strange reason, I was hitting a ton of 3's, and both teams had really good teamwork; back and forth scoring with lots of passes. Then we tied in football, and finished it off with a taco salad and banana splits. Amazing family, and fun day.

Love you all so much! Looking forward to see what we can do as we get closer to Christmas! Oh, speaking of that: The LDS Christmas Campaign is going to be starting the 1st of December, and starting the 25th of November, you can see all the videos for the 25 Days of December! We will be following the same theme as last year, #LightTheWorld, or #IluminaElMundo. I invite you all to get familiarized with the campaign and put it in action so that we may spread Christ's light in us throughout the world! Yo sé que Jesucristo es la luz del mundo, y que esa luz brilla en nosotros. Que podamos ser las manos de Él esta Navidad. (I know that Jesus Christ is the light of the world, and that that light shines in us. May we be the hands of Him this Christmas.)

Con mucho amor,

Élder Newman

Callie, I'm glad you had such a great birthday dinner! Here they don't celebrate Thanksgiving much, and fewer know what it is. But the American Elders ALWAYS celebrate it for sure! And great choice with the ice cream cake; I tried that stuff too and LOVED it! Love you sooo much!

¡Emma! ¡Buena elección con las camisas de Boston! ¡Mi compañero justo dio su aprobación! ¡Y doy la mía también! (Good choice with the Boston shirts! My companion gave his approval! And I give mine too!) Haha crazy scheduling conflicts! I remember those days for sure. And way to go on the ACT score even with unanswered questions! I'm sure you'll be beating me and Christian with all the Q's answered. ¡Te quiero mucho! (I love you so much!)

Hey Bear, doing well in sports. I guess it kinda runs in the family, no? Seriously, way to go giving it your all at all times. That is the greatest attribute an athlete, missionary, or person can ever have. Haha the sore voice is always "fun." Love you Sarah!

Holy cow, Mom! I'm glad that biking dude on the mountain trail is okay; crazy moment! And I sure hope the peacocks come back to say hi when I get home; last time I saw a peacock was in my first area, Chuy! And the light and eclipse talks were some of my favorites of this past conference; great message for all. Love you tons, Mom!

Pap, was the paralyzed girl that spoke to the YW Cambry Kaylor, the one that did horse vaulting? I think I might've seen her video on Mormon Channel once... And that is a FANTASTIC Diana Prince story; she would've made a stellar missionary.  And it is amazing to ponder the constant sacrifice of our armed forces and veterans; sometimes we do take them for granted. Love you!

Mom’s Questions:

1. Did you get your Christmas package from the Palabe family yet?

Not yet, I think they got back this week. I'll surely get it at church tomorrow.

2. How is the other Virginia? Is she on track for baptism? How about your other investigators?

Virginia Vodanovich was baptized yesterday, and all her family came and loved it! This was huge because Gerardo and Germán (dad and son) were lukewarm and Victoria (daughter) was not an investigator, and now they're all coming to church tomorrow for the confirmation! We've had little contact with our other investigators because of changes week and this crazy week of office responsibilities, so we're trying to reestablish contact with them.

3. What did you learn from Bishop Davies when he visited last week?

I learned about cultivating our spiritual gifts and having the right mindset for revelation, as well as receiving instruction and intelligence.

4. What have you learned about the new secretary, Elder Christensen this week?

He's a cross country runner, loves to eat just about anything, is kind of awkward (at least that’s what he says) but super funny, and super dedicated to what he does.

5. How’s the weather? Have you put the sweaters away yet?

This week was stifling hot with the humidity until the hailstorm, and then today was nice and breezy.

Music Lives On; Un Chaos Tranquilo; e As Aguas Do Batismo

Virginia's baptism

Hermana Kessler (from Grandma Jessop's stake)

4 Generations: Elder Anderson (Jackson's trainer), Elder Newman, Elder Sousa (who Jackson trained) and Elder Richards (who Elder Sousa trained)

Saying goodbye to Elder and Sister Wankier who finished their mission and went home to Idaho Falls 

A little friendly competition

 Visiting with the Eddy's 

Hey peoples! Super crazy yet great week! Crazy because of changes being on the same day that Bishop Davies visited to speak to us. (Un Chaos Tranquilo) Great because I had the sweet privilege to baptize Virginia yesterday!  (As Aguas do Batismo) She was so excited, prepared, and at peace yesterday, and it was amazing to see in contrast with the down-trodden Virginia that we first got to know the 3rd of October. In her testimony - which was one of the strongest I've ever heard - she said that she feels at home in the Church. I feel so blessed to be able to be here in Malvín and witness all these miracles happening before our eyes.

Music Lives On: We were preparing the chapel on Monday to receive the two missions and Bishop Davies, and the assistants and secretaries from the other mission came to help. One of the secretaries looked at me closely and said that he knew me from somewhere. Turns out: he was in the Mexico MTC choir at the same time that I was the choir director! We talked about the epic EFY Spanish Medley we had sung, and it was super cool and kinda surreal to experience that. Music lives on, my friends.

Guys, I know that this Church is true, without a shadow of a doubt; I know that this is God's Kingdom and the safe and only path to home. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Lord guides us in the work if we allow Him. I've seen it firsthand here.

¡Les quiero muchísimo! (Vosotros is almost non-existent everywhere but Spain, so I'm just gonna use ustedes now.)

Con mucho amor,

Élder Newman :)

Mom, that is quite the visit right there! Peacocks! Oh my goodness, how I remember the birthday permission joke... Super cool to hear about all the cool things happening all around the world in the mission field with my boys! Wow, super cool with the Holland parents! And that's kind of funny: I never realized that the missionary dads didn't even know each other! Love you soo much, Mom.

Dad, business is always good for sure, because if you never work, there's no time for rest. Haha a throwing speed bowling contest, why am I not surprised...  "Gotta make a move." Glad to hear that the Bear is playing hard as always. I actually have a "Trunky" book filled with stuff I want to check out/do when I get home. It's really nice: I hear about something, I write it down, and then I put the book back on the shelf and forget about it until I put the next thing in. Love you Pap!

CALLERIST! Happy 7th birthday! Haha, I remember that Dad joke; it bothered me too to have to ask if I could be a certain age on my birthday. And I absolutely LOVE Classic Skating! I am loving the mission soo much! And yes, I am being very nice to Elder Bazaes, and he with me. Love you tons!

Bear da Bear! Haha I remember those study seshes I had for Pre Calculus with Madi Aston my junior year; in the beginning, we actually did study hard, but it slowly turned more and more into funny YouTube videos. Good times... Good luck with bball, and have fun at Natalie's farewell! Tell her good luck from the Newman boys! Love you!

Emma, ¡gracias por tu apoyo y ánimo infalible! Y ¡bien hecho con los exámenes y todo! (Thank you for your support and infallible spirit! And well done with the exams and everything!) And HOLY COW! I didn't know that you had a dance solo to do! SWEET! I can't wait to see it! And have an absolute blast with Andrew at Sadie's! SUCH a great kid. And a fantastic theme too! ¡Te quiero muchísimo! (I love you so much!)

Mom’s Questions:

1. How did transfers go? Who is the new office elder that replaced Elder Poulson?

Super well! Elder Poulson went to Paso de los Toros, and the new secretary is Élder Christensen from Kentucky! You'll get to know him in the video.

2. How are the Virginia’s doing? I fasted for them on fast Sunday. I hope they are continuing to come to church and that the word of wisdom is coming along.

Welp, I baptized Virginia Añón yesterday, and her mom came, so SUPER well! She hasn't had any more problems with the WoW. And Virginia Vodanovich will be out of town this weekend, but she has all 3 attendances, is super excited for her baptism, and is complying with all the commandments we've taught. Super great! Thanks for fasting for them.

3. Did you get your visit from a general authority that you mentioned in your last letter?

Yup! Bishop Davies from the Presiding Bishopric. It was super cool and I received quite a bit of revelation. I also got the 4 generational picture there with my pops, son, and grandson! :) The only problem was that changes were the same day, and we had to get everyone to their ares from here in Malvín, so the rest of that day was crazy.

4. We’ve been hearing that there are some world wide changes coming to missionary work, like all missionary companionships getting a smart phone to help further the work along. Have you heard anything in Uruguay about these changes and the timeline for when and if your mission may be implementing this?

Not so far. But since many Uruguayans use an app called WhatsApp to communicate and even fewer just use that and no actual cell phone calls, so the Wankiers - who just went home - left us financiers one of their smartphones for such cases!

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HELLO PEOPLES! THANK YOU ALL FOR THE BIRTHDAY WISHES! Now, hitting 20, I honestly do feel a little older; teen years are over! Excited to see what happens in this decade! Honestly, with my birthday this week, and all the stuff that's been happening, this week was about as close to perfect as you can get.

Perfeito (Perfection): I felt so much love this past weekend with all your birthday wishes and the birthday stuff the Office Elders did for me. And despite a little startling roadblock that we hit with Virginia Añón (at our appointment with her this week, she had a pack of cigarettes sitting out on the table and so we had to teach the Word of Wisdom instead of the lesson we had planned. But she still is committed and feels confident she can quit.), the two Virginias have been flying high, and in some occasions, they bore testimonies of principles and lessons we haven’t even taught yet! Talk about elect! They both are still well on track for their baptisms. We also found María Calcagño again and she accepted a baptismal date for the 2nd of December; she thought the Plan of Salvation was precious.

Un Subido y Bajado Dramático de Peso (A Dramatic Up and Down of Weight): With all the birthday stuff I ate this past week, I shot from 196 lbs. up to 209 in under a week. 13 POUNDS.Gratefully, I ate so well for the rest of the week and was so dedicated to exercise that I went back under 200 before the end of the week. Thus, we good.

PG be Famous!: For those of you who know the District videos - training for missionaries - the Hermana Zaldivar, who is from Argentina, went to PG High School! It's episode 5 of the District on Mormon Channel, go check it out. Super cool!  

May you all have happiness and joy in this next week! I know that Christ lives and is at the helm of this Church, and thus we have no need to fear!

Con mucho amor,

Élder Newman :)

Mom, haha oh goodness, I love Callie's Primary Program enthusiasm. Glad you enjoyed the visit from the Palabé family, and how cool that they got there on the 30th! Excited for the package! Love you Mom, thanks for everything you constantly do for me!

Pap, tough loss, but glad to hear the boys fought even though they got jipped of the TD in a crucial moment. Reminds me of the Utah-Oregon game with the fumble (although that was no official's fault, it was a crucial turning moment in the game). Quidditch!? Man, I would have loved to be there! Love you Pap!

Emmers! Injuries are no fun for sure, but glad to hear it's minor and healing quickly. What a sweet service experience with the rest home residents, and I'm stoked to see your dances! ¡Te quiero y espero lo mejor para vos (ti)! (I love you and I hope the best for you!)

Callerist! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! 7 years old! I remember when you were born and I held you in my arms for the first time. Now you're gonna be 7! How the time has flown! I hope your party is super fun and that you have a great week! What a cute soccer costume for Halloween; you rocked it! And great job with your part in the Primary Program! I love you!

Bear, way to go doing your part in the primary program even though you felt too old to be up there. Besides, that's a great experience you were able to share about Kaylee in your talk! Haha love the costume! Haha buff Australians are super cool for sure. I bet he’s a great basketball trainer. Can't wait to see and hear about the Bantam experience! Love you Bear.

Mom’s Questions:

1. What did you do for your birthday? How was the package? Did you like it?

We kept it chill and had ice cream cake on Saturday. Then, in our meetings on Monday, President brought cupcakes from Hermana Eddy and wanted to sing Happy Birthday again (and I had used your birthday party in a bag ;) ), so we sang again; but all in all, pretty low key. And I LOVED your package! Thanks a ton! :)

2. How are the investigators doing? Are the baptismal dates still on for the Virginias?

They're both good to go still! They both came this Sunday and even became friends! :D And we've also re-found a sweet old investigator named María Calcagño, on whom we put a baptismal date of the 2nd of December! :)

3. What is your favorite thing that happened this week?

Honestly, I don't know, because this week, with my birthday and with the great things that have happened in Malvín, has been perfect.

4. What ways are you finding to serve others in Malvin?

We did some cleaning a little back for Pablo Perez, who is helping us out a lot in the work, and we plan on going back soon to paint! Also, a sister in Malvín Norte wants help painting the outside of her house too, so that'll be fun! :)

5. Are transfers this next week? What are your responsibilities during transfer week?

There'll be a ton for sure, and we know for a fact that Élder Poulson is leaving the offices (6 months are up), but only the assistants and President know the changes for now; we don't even know who the new secretary will be! During changes week, we normally welcome the oros to the mission, give little presentations on what we office Elders do for them, prepare them to meet their trainers, and buy & distribute the bus tickets for the transferring missionaries to get to their new areas. However, this week, it'll be a little different because we will be receiving a General Authority this week! I'll explain more next week. :)

Mega Mila Pizza; e As Virginia Estão Volando

Hello everybody! I have received some birthday wishes from many of you, and thank you so so much!! It was a tad strange to turn 19, but 20 is sure trippin me out! I do not feel that old for sure! Well, at this point I look older, but it’s amazing how fast 20 years of my life have flown by. Thank you all for your support, love and prayers!

So Virginia (English lady) came to church this past Sunday! What's more, she absolutely excelled in and loved the Plan of Salvation on Tuesday! She understood 2 Nephi 2 and the Lesson 2 folleto super well before we came; we were astounded at her comprehension! She has a work interview today at noon, we have a charla with her at a member's house tonight, and she is super excited to attend church again. We are super excited! She has been an amazing example of desire, faith, and sincerity, and I feel super blessed to have the honor of teaching her.

We found the family (Virginia, Gerardo, and Germán) this week as well and reviewed L1 (Restoration) for Germán (wasn't there when we first taught it to Virginia & Gerardo), using the Great Apostasy video with Wilford Woodruff. What a charla that was! In Buenos Aires, Virginia had read, understood and LOVED Alma 32! We moved her baptismal date to the 17/11/17 so that she and the fam can witness Virginia Añon's baptism (11/11/17), and tonight we are talking about the temple and families! We're also thinking about, sometime next week, having a charla with them at the temple square, and we think that it will be amazing for them!

We continue to search and find great people to teach here! We had contacted Diego last Wednesday, and although he was too busy to attend to us, he invited us over for the next week, or this Wednesday. So we went, and although he had little time, we introduced the Book of Mormon, and he promised to read and pray for the next time we come! :)

Mega Mila Pizza: One of the greatest inventions of all time! It is breaded chicken (or breaded red meat) as a crust - that's the milanesa, or mila - and sauce and cheese on top. SUPER good!

Love you all! Here's to a great Halloween week! If any of you have a super creative costume, I'd love to see a picture sent my way to get some laughs.  ¡Vamo arriba!

Con amor,

Élder Old-man

Dad, what a play!  That is the PG ball I like to see. Tell the boys congrats! I like the sound of that new fall break tradition.  Love you Pap!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TOMORROW MOM! I honestly forgot how old you are now, but doesn't matter much, because now I'm becoming old too. We are doing super well here in the offices and in Mavín; it's been a blast working with the office boys. They are a hoot for sure; good times!  Glad the trip went super well; looks like y'all had a ton of fun! Love you tons!

Emmer! Don't remind me, I feel old and look even older thanks to bags under my eyes and fat face that was not there before.Oh well, what can you do... I will be praying for your 30 or higher on the ACT today for sure! ¡Te quiero muchísimo!

BEAR! Thanks a ton! And way to go with bantam again! I'm super excited to see how you do! This Wednesday, there was a ward sport activity like always, and this youth, after our usual soccer game, challenged me to a one-on-one game of basketball. I beat him, and the next guy, 21-0. It was pretty fun. Best of luck with the U13 soccer game! Love you.

Callie! Way to go with kneeboarding! So proud of you for trying something scary.  It sure is fun, isn't it?  And I'll try to not be scared of turning 20.   I love you tons!

Mom’s Questions:

1. How was your birthday package?

Opening it today!

2. Did you use your birthday money I deposited for you? What did you spend it on?

Not yet, but I am thinking of stuff I could use it on...

3. I am packing up your Christmas package and have a little something for the other office secretaries, but I am wondering how much time you spend with the AP’s. Should I do a little something for them as well? Or will you not be with them on Christmas?

We'll probably all be together, because President Eddy is going to hold a brunch for us. Go right ahead! :)

4. Tell me about your ward.

Malvín is a big ward of about 100 active members from the areas of Malvín, Malvín Norte, and Buceo. Sacrament meeting is the last meeting of each Sunday (11:20), we have recreative activities each Wednesday, and the members are very supportive and loving, with really strong testimonies. Especially Bishop Ibañez; I've only gotten to know him a little bit, but what a friendly, humble, and dedicated man. Elder Wankier has gone off about the great job he does in helping people to become active and get to the temple. The majority of the members live in our area, on the south side of Av. Italia (Malvín y Buceo), and our area is much bigger than Malvín Norte, but we also do have more buses. Great place! This building is also the stake center of the Este stake.