Alex's 33rd email from Chile 4/4/11

This is how Elders play ping pong......with their journals!

Hola Familia!!!

This was an amazing week filled with tons of blessings. It was just awesome. We have been working super hard as always and I am loving it.  Me and Elder Sellers are having a blast and we get along super well.  Our Zone leader today actually told me today while we were playing soccer that he has noticed how good of a companionship and how close we are.  So I thought that was cool. 

Tuesday was the "Dia de Jovenes" or the "Day of Teenagers", there are like two every year where kids storm the streets and just cause public damage type stuff and go crazy.  The whole day everyone was telling us we need to get into the house early and we said as soon as we see something we will go right in. Luckily we live in a good part of town I guess cause no one was in the streets that night.  Everyone is so scared nobody left haha.  We were honestly the only ones out but I guess in another part a house was burned down crazy!

Also we had interviews with President this last week!!  I love that man. He said I have progressed a ton especially in my Spanish it was cool.  Also I asked him if he knew how Elder Padraza has been since going home.  He didn't know but then told me that when he took Elder Pedraza to the Airport he told him to tell me he loved me and was thankful for everything I did for him.  That really meant alot for me to hear that and was one of those tender mercies from God :) 

Hey really quick before I forget.  What do you mean Sarah was better than all the kids with her teeth? Do you not remember I went to a dance the same night I got mine out??? I was golden and didn't even swell up psh.  How quickly you forget haha!

Ok back to my week. So we taught Paul this last week he should have his baptismal interview this Sunday. We told him about conference and got super excited and was like "Hey can i come?"  He wanted to go to all 5 sessions but couldn't come Saturday cause it was his dads turn to have him. 

Alex loves to play ping pong and it looks like he can improvise when there are no paddles.

Elders listening to conference and taking notes in their journals.

Conference was amazing!!!!!!! I loved it and they go by soo quick on the mission it is ridiculous!!  I have never taken so many notes while at conference.  One of my favorites was during the first Saturday session.  It was from a 70 and I can't remember his name right now but his talk was about pain and our need for pain in this life.  It was really cool and I liked it a lot.  I have a lot of notes on it.  But also something super random happened too during that talk.  Well I guess not super random, but I have been set on being an orthopedic surgeon for awhile but during that talk the random thought came into my mind that maybe I should be an obstetrician the Doctor that works with pregnant woman and the birthing process.  Thinking about it I think it would be super cool to do.  But who knows, I have awhile to think about it.  Apparently I know I need to be some type of doctor.  Alan went to all 5 sessions of conference and loved it he is an amazing kid.  This past Sunday was probably the best Sunday I have ever had in my entire life. 1. it was conference, 2. Paul came to conference and loved it!  He was just super excited and I asked him what talk was his favorite and he couldn't decide he liked 3 or 4 of them and the coolest part was he was telling me all about them and why he liked them. 3. Samantha Limni salvo Guzman was baptized.  She is adorable.  I love that girl. The only part that didn't please me about the baptism is that her dad's family came which is fine but some came drunk.  They didn't act bad but it's like "come on it's a baptism" and if you are in the state you are not going to feel the spirit of it.  When I baptized Samantha one of them stood up and started clapping crazily.  I did laugh a little at that but still.  But the poor girl they didn't have hot water and the water was freezing. She almost started crying but as soon as I started the prayer she calmed down and it was beautiful.  After she was confirmed and given the Holy Ghost. 

After Conference we took Paul home then went to Samantha's house.  They invited us over.  There was alcohol there so we grabbed a couple of churripan and headed on our way.  I feel so bad for that little girl.  Her dad and his whole family are way into drinking and I mean hard drinking.  She was just sitting in a corner just trying to ignore it all.  But after we left Hermana Jessica asked us to come over.  So we went over to her house where she told us because of President Monson's talk she is going to drop smoking that night.  Remember that we had made a calendar for her to stop smoking?  But because of the talk she is determined to just stop.  Then she asked us if we could give her a blessing and directly asked me to give her one. Now up to this point in my mission I have tried to just kind of hand it off to my companion because although my Spanish is way better I just don't want to mess up someone's blessing. But there was no getting out of this one. So I gave my first blessing in Spanish and it was awesome.  I was definitely assisted by the spirit on this one and it was such an amazing spiritual experience for me and for her.  It was just way neat and now I for sure don't have any fears for giving blessings in Spanish.  I love this gospel and how it just blesses and how we can receive strength and help from our heavenly father.

Lunch at the church between conference sessions.

Look!! They have Canada Dry in Chile!!!

Paul is great as I have said.  Maximus and his family are good we are going to try and pass by for their place this week. Alan's dad I am pretty sure is a member I think that is what he told me.  If he is he is not active. I got Dad's package this last week.  I don't know if he did it on purpose but he put two copies in there so I gave one to Elder Sellers haha!   Elder Sellers is awesome and the other two are doing good.  I think Elder Sanchez is a little home sick.  Every night he while in bed he looks and pictures of his friends and family.  I don't know how common that is.  I never did that.  Like ya, I miss you guys but I am just stoked and excited to be here.  The only other person I have seen just constantly looking at his photos was Elder Pedraza.

Elder Sellers, Samantha & Elder Leavitt

Well guys I love you all a ton. I do miss you but I am just so happy to be here doing what I am doing. I pray you are all safe and loving life. I will talk you next week :)

Con Mucho Amor,

                              Elder Alexander Leavitt

P.S. Alex sent two more little emails after this one.  Here they are:

"Oh forgot to tell you that you two were blessed to have me as a child. I tested your patience and helped you two progress as children of God. That's what conference said.  I can't remember who said it though look it up haha"

"Also the guy sitting next to me had an email that was in English and asked me to translate it for him which I did legit!"