Getting into the Christmas Spirit!

December 21, 2015

Hey guys!!

This week was good! It went by pretty fast, which is nice!! This letter won't be as long since I will be talking to you guys on Friday!

This week we did a zone service project! Hermana and Presidente Zanni came over and we spent the day making cookies and having fun! We spent the morning baking tons of cookies for the seniors in the senior's home! I don't know if they turned out that good, but the dough was pretty good! ha-ha! It was fun to see everyone and hangout for a couple of hours! We then played some games as a zone! It was pretty fun, but it was also a little long! After an hour of playing "do you like your neighbor?" it gets a little old! Some missionaries really get competitive as well which I find very funny! Elder Magby(my comp) broke a chair in the process of winning a game, which was pretty funny! Hahaha. We did get to wear normal clothes so that was nice! I just wore some basketball shorts and a t shirt, along with most of the elderes who were there! Elder Magby went cowboy style! He had his flannel, boots, jeans, massive belt buckle and he was even carrying a knife! He is pretty proud to be from Texas!! 

After we were done making all those cookies we changed and went and delivered them to the seniors at the Senior Center. That facility was in rough shape. It was warmer inside than outside - probably 45 degrees! I was dying of heat! I couldn't help but drip with sweat as I was visiting with the old folks. I don't know why  it was so hot inside, but the Christmas hat that I had to wear was pretty wet after I took it off! I feel bad for the next missionary in the next zone who has to use mine! While we were in there, I sat with an older lady who could not speak. I started to talk to her about my life. She could not speak, but she let me know that she was listening by making a sound! We were talking for a while and at the end I took a picture of us and gave her the cookies we made! After I took the picture she started to cry! I think she was really grateful for the visit and wanted to communicate so badly with us. I was touched by the whole experience. It was pretty cool to visit with her. Last year we did the same activity, but I was so new I couldn't really understand anyone. I am happy this time I understood tons!

Mom, I got the Christmas package!! The first night I looked at all the presents and decided I was going to open one every day and then that would leave me a couple to open on Christmas day! Well, after two days of coming back and seeing all the presents and wondering what they were, I couldn't help it anymore! I had to open them! So, I opened them all the other night! Hahaha!!! Man, they are awesome!!!!  I hope you are not disappointed that I opened them early. It was so hard not to! Plus, I was so hungry and I knew there would be some food inside. Thanks a ton! I liked everything!!!!

After a little more than a year of oatmeal for breakfast, I  have decided to change things up a bit! I like oatmeal and will probably go back to eating it because it is both filling and yummy, but let me tell you that changing things up is pretty flipping good! I am now eating eggs and toast! It has changed everything for my taste buds! Speaking of food, I have discovered a new side of the word of wisdom here on the mission! It is just as important to eat good foods in good portions!! Sometimes at lunches, I literally eat until I cannot  stand the smell of food! ( It is not good to leave anything on the plate as it offends the person who cooked.)Then I get back to the pension and all I want to do is sleep! I cannot study effectively cause I just want to lay down! Or I will just feel sick all day because I have eaten so much! Hahaha! I realized you cannot really feel the spirit at that point. I have been getting better handling a full stomach. The members will feed you and feed you and feed you. They are good people!
 

Anyways talk to you on Friday! 
 

I love you guys

Elder Carter