January 16th, 2011

Estimada familia,

MEXICO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Where do I start?? (please, forgive me for sounding weird, I am very little time and I´ve been speaking 100% spanish for the past few days and it´s getting harder to switch back and forth! It´s also a little hard to type on this keyboard-some of the keys are in different places!) We took a prop plane down to Hermosillo, got off, got through customs (speaking spanish, which I thought was pretty impressive) and met our Mission Pres. and the APs waiting for us with a big banner, ´´bienvenidos a hermosillo!´´ We drove to the mission home, which is pretty close to the temple and the mission offices in a pretty nice part of the city. We talked and got to know the president and his wife-- they are both extremmmmmely wonderful people, and neither of them really speak english ha ha. Presidente can read english pretty dang well though, because in my interview w him he basically read my whole missionary application and what my bishop and stake president wrote to him in english, but said it in spanish. We stayed the night in the house where the APs live right next to the temple (all 8 of us, and some of the mexican missionaries that were going to be our companions!) the next day, we went and did some more paperwork w the government, took some pictures, signed some papers, etc etc etc, and finalllly we got our assignments. I am serving in colonia Nuevo Hermosillo, the area furthest south in Hermosillo :) it is kind of like my first area in Tucson, the ghetto always seems to be the furthest south! Elder Palfreyman is about a 7ish-maybe8 hour bus ride south in Navajoa!! out of the 8 new missionaries that came with me, I am the only one who got a gringo trainer, but it´s okay b/c he´s AWESOME. my companion is elder Florence, he´s from Ogden Utah, and has about 8 months in the mission. He waited for his visa about 2 months in the Salt Lake City South mission, and has only been here in mexico for about 4 months and his spanish is AWESOME. The area is pretty new to him too, he was just serving in Guaymas, so every day is pretty much an adventure!

AH there is so much to tell you in so little time!

We walk everywhere, except when we have to take the bus up into town for meetings about three times a week, Elder Florence is the DL. Prettymch all the other missionaries in our district and in our zone are Mexicanos, except for my good friend Elder Church, who is serving in the area just north of us. We are assigned to the Nuevo Hermosillo Ward, and the members seem to be awesome too!

Our apartment is a little ghetto. Elder Florence says that we might be moving to a different one sometime this transfer, but maybe not. It is definitely something to get used to, not ever drinking the water, not ever having any warm/hot water, and just simply not having water after 8ish pm haha.

I love it :)

Mexico is very different... very... Mexico.. haha and I am loving every second. We are teaching a few awesome families, one we tracted into, and another that reminds me of Cheaper by the Dozen-- 9 kids, 5 from one prev marriage and 4 from the other-- he´s a member, shes not. Everything just feels right here:) I don´t quite understand everything thats going on around me... somehow spanish seemed to be easier in Arizona haha but I just have the greatest feeling that Iam where I am supposed to be.

I´m safe, and I´m happy, and´we´re working hard.

I do not have the Mission Office address with me right now - we stopped by this little hole in the wall internet cafe - but the answer to your question is that I think it will be easier to send my mail to the mission office. From the looks of it, we don´t really have mailboxes, or really reliable mail services here.. supposedly letters take like a month to get home? I heard that they have to go through Mexico City or something.. We will experiment, and I will get all that information to you next pday. But for now, email is def. the most reliable form of communication.

Alright, we have to go catch the bus! But I love you all SOOOOOO much and I am so happy and excited to finally be here! I´ve already seen so many miracles, and i just have the best feeling that more are on their way. You´re all in my prayers,

Jack