Mba'e la porte

Tyler got to see a couple of his old companions at the station in Neuquen when he went to pick up his new companion...he was happy to see them again.  The first two pictures are of his MTC companion, Elder Gallegos and the second is of his trainer in Rincon de los Sauces, Elder Adcock.

He ordered this plaque and thought it was funny that the "O" looks more like a "Q."

One of his favorite fruits in Argentina.  He loves apples and pears...so what could be better than an apple/pear combo!

Tyler's new companion, Elder Saldivar.  He is from Paraguay and has been learning English...it's a great companionship as they can help each other learn.  Tyler says he is learning more and more words every day.

Monday- Pday. I spent the day down in the terminal in Neuquen waiting for elder Saldivar. I got to see a couple of my old comps and other missionaries so that was fun!

Tuesday- We went and visited a less active. We had a good lesson. We visited Victor and had a good lesson with him!

Wednesday- We had a good day contacting. We contacted out in the costas. We have a few potentials and gain a new investigator! We tried visiting a few people after but they werent home. We walked A LOT.

Thursday- Went to the costas again. And had more success. New investigators. We were then able to visit a less active. And We talked with a super drunk guy, He was super drunk. He just kept telling us ¨"te quiero" so that was pretty exciting

Friday- We had district meeting. Elder Saldivar felt sick so he rested most of the day. We went out to a lesson we had with Orlando. We put a baptism date with him! That was awesome! And we gained 1 new investigator.

Saturday- We tried visiting Victor but we were only able to talk to him for a few minutes. In the morning we did an english class so that was fun. We looked for a less active and walked down some super long road but it was getting dark so we turned around to walk back. We plan on going this week to find them.

Sunday- We had church and i think we had 48 people there! We went and visited a couple less actives ad had some really good lessons.

The title isnt spanish. it is Guarani. They speak it in Paraguay. 

This week I have been thinking about how many times and life we make a mistake and get knocked down. When we are knocked down we have 2 options. We can either feel bad about ourselves and stay down or we can remember our Savior Jesus Christ and how because of Him we are able to get back up and keep going along. He is always there for us. He will never leave us alone.

Con Amor

Elder Opfar

1.  What is your mission theme or slogan?

I don't remember all of it. it is in the mission logo. its like Cristo es la razon, el espiritu es la clave, and I don't remember the other parts

(I found this picture of the mission logo on the Lovell's blog.)

2.  What scripture has had the biggest impact on you this week?

In Spanish I just got done reading those scriptures in Alma 26 and I really like those. It makes me think if those missionaries, who were some of the greatest in the Book of Mormon can struggle I can too. Suffer with patience. Go through everything with patience. Being patient in everything every single day

3.  What has been your biggest challenge this week?

those days of walking A LOT and my body is just exhausted and I'm exhausted but we still have an hour or so left so you just keep pushing. I had a couple days like that this week

4.  What has been your biggest concern this week?

finding new investigators. that was what we have been trying to do for the past 6 weeks

5.  What has been your biggest success?  (You must answer this..think hard...)

We found new investigators. We went out to the costas and contacted and had some success

6.  Who has been your favorite person this week and why?

I don't know

7. What has been your most significant tender mercy and why?

Finding people. we have been trying and contacting for 6 weeks. and this week we got into houses and taught people. We had success. Our hard work of contacting and being persistent has paid off. 

8.  What are you looking forward to this week?

teaching people. going back and teaching those investigators we have now. and finding more new ones

9.  What is the best/worst thing you ate this week?  Did you get fed??

Yes we had 5 lunches this week. I dont know. I like it all. There wasn't a worst thing. I liked everything we ate this week

...I do not boast in my own strength, nor in my own wisdom; but behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God.

Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.

Alma 26:11-12

...we can strive to be better each and every day

Monday- pday. We played some soccer. I rolled my ankle so that was fun. Elder Thorum didn't feel good so we stayed in. We started exchanges. 

Tuesday- We had district meeting. I was with Elder Shearer in their area. We visited a couple less actives and had a good day. Elder Thorum just stayed in the pension not feeling good.

Wednesday- We visited a couple less actives in our area. but they weren't home. and also one of our investigators wasn't home. We didn't have much success contacting

Thursday- We did weekly planning today. We visited a less active. And we were able to visit our investigator Orlando. He talks A LOT. about random things. We were able to visit a member family too and talk with them a little. It was all pretty good

Friday- We had mission correlation today. We were able to visit another less active. We went to an investigator and talked with him for a couple minutes. he told us he is good with his religion. doesn't want us coming by anymore. but he told us he learned a lot and his view on us changed- not what he thought it was. We had a little success with contacing. 

Saturday- We did some contacting with not much success. We had transfer calls. I am staying here in Cipolletti and my new comp is I think elder Saldivar. I believe he is from Paraguay! Should be fun! I'm excited for this next transfer. 

Sunday- We went to church. We had 42 people there today. And i once again directed the music is sacrament meeting. We visited a couple members abd Elder Thorum packed. 

This transfer has gone by so fast: I cant believe it. It just makes me think of how fast everything goes around us. And if we are really doing everything we can everyday to become our full potential. To be what our Heavenly Father wants us to be. And how we can strive to be better each and everyday. We can look back on the day and see what we did or didn't do and change the next day to become better. 

Have a great week everyone!

Con amor

Elder Opfar

1.  How has the weather there been?  Is it still pretty hot?  Does it feel hotter in Cipo or in Rincon?  When is it going to start cooling down for fall?  Is it still raining and flooding a lot?

this week was a little colder than normal. it felt great. but now it is starting to heat back up. i think it will start going down in like April or May. no we haven't had rain since like the other day

2.  Did you get more lunches this week?  I've been hoping people are feeding you!

we only had 2 this week. one family who feeds us twice was gone. they were in Chile but they are home now. we should have more this week

3.  When you got to Cipo 6 weeks ago, you said that there had been cockroaches in your pension. Have you seen any?  Are they big?

yeah I have seen some. they are just really small.

4.  Do you have the same dog problems in Cipo that you had in Rincon?  Or are there less dogs on the streets because it's more of a city?

yeah. there are a lot less. like yeah we still see them but it isn't like Rincon and all those ones

5.  What are some of the hardest things for you to say in Spanish?  Like, is there anything that you have a hard time saying so that people understand you?

no. its really just conjugating verbs. because there are different tenses that mean the same thing but are only used for certain things

6.  Have you heard from Elder Mena since he went home?  

yeah a little. i still email him a little bit

7.  Did you experience or see any miracles this week?

we have a few people to go and visit this next week. some potentials

8.  Anything funny happen?

uhm I don't know. I don't remember. I'm sure

9.  Did you learn anything new in your studies this week?

well like i have been reading the Book of Mormon. and I have really been seeing/looking at the missionaries in that. like how they preach boldly. with power and authority. and yeah. I just like it

I have a picture of a spider...

Me:  Do you have any pictures for me?

Tyler:  not from this week. sorry. I have one of a spider that was in our window...

Me:  I'll take anything....(thinking it would give me a picture of his window, what's outside, etc...)

Tyler:  ehh I only took the picture because it had 2 little bugs wrapped up in a web. and then we ended up killing all the spiders and burnt them, so that was fun...

Monday- Pday. We played some soccer with the zone. We then were able to visit a less active. Then we started exchanges.

Tuesday- I was with Elder hill in our area. We had district meeting. We contacted witha little success. We visited a less actie member. and We had a couple good lessons today

Wednesday- We tried contacting with not a lot of success. Elder Thorum started getting a really bad headache so we came to the pension a little early.

Thursday- I went down and got fingerprinted at the police station for tramites. visa stuff. We visited a less active. We tried visitin a few other people but they werent home

Friday- Contacted with not much success. We talked witha couple less actives. We started Exchanges with the zone leaders. I was with Elder candia in our area.

Saturday- We had a pretty good day. We had a good day of contacting. some success. We did service for a guy in the street. We helped him move dirt. We talked with him for like 45 minutes and he said we could come back.

Sunday- We went to church but only had like 26 people there. I directed the music in sacrament meeting. We visited a less active family. then went to a member family and visited them.

I hope yall have a great week!

Con amor

Elder Opfar

1.  I heard there may have been an earthquake in Northern Argentina this week.  A pretty big one that some felt as far down as Rio Neuquen.  Did you feel it or hear about it?

no we didn't feel it. I hadn't heard about it either. 

2.  How do you keep track of where you've tracted? Do you use a map to get around or a GPS?

we have a map in the pension. And we know our area. we plan out where we are going throughout the day. where we are going to contact.

3.  Do you have your zone meetings in Cipo or in Allen?  Are there any missionaries in your zone that were in the MTC with you?

zone meetings in Cipo. There are more missionaries here so it costs less for the Allen missionaries to travel here. and we are Cipolletti zone. No one from my mtc zone is here in my zone

4.  Have you connected with anyone in particular in your district or your zone?

no. I get along with all them. I like them all

5.  Do you get along well with the sisters in your district?

yeah I guess. 

6.  You said last week you only had 3 lunches all week.  Were you fed better this week?

no we only had 3 lunches this week too. But oh well. people are traveling and that's why. they are traveling before school starts back up for the kids

7.  What was the best thing you ate?

oh I have no idea

8.  What is your favorite meal to prepare for yourself?

I like pasta with meat and sauce. and bread. its easy

9.  Do you live near the other elders in your district?  Do you still have their washing machine?

no they live like 10-15 minute walk from our pension. no they have it. but when we have done exchanges we have used it

10.  What was the best thing that happened this week?  What was the hardest?

we had some success with finding people! but the hardest is all the contacting

11.  What has been the biggest adjustment for you living in Cipo?

I don't know. I've kind of just jumped right into it and went along

Pecado-sin, Pescado-fish

Monday- We did a zone p-day. That was fun. We played soccer. It rained a little. And all the streets were just filled with water. So it took a little time to walk back to the pension. We tried visiting some less actives but they weren't home

Tuesday- We had correlation meeting. We had a good lesson with a less active. We then were able to talk to the brother of the kid, who lived in Texas, from last week. Then we were walking and it just started to POUR on us. So we got soaked. W"e finally were able to get under a building with a porch and just waited it out for 10 minutes. 

Wednesday- We contacted a little. Didn´t have much success. But we were able to visit a less active family.

Thursday- We did our weekly planning. We contacted and looked for other less actives. We had a little success. Then we had a meeting with the Bishop.

Friday- We had zone training today. We had appointments but they fell through. We tried some contacting.

Saturday- We had some appointments fall through. Contacted with no success.

Sunday- We had church. That was good. Only had 32 people at church though. We visited some less actives but they all weren't home. But we visited one family with the Bishop and had a good lesson with them.

Hope everyone has a good week!

Con amor

Elder Opfar

1.  Have you started dreaming in Spanish yet?

I have had a few dreams that there is Spanish in it. not full Spanish

2.  What do you do during siesta time?  Do you ever get to just lay down and take a quick nap?

no. we usually do language study and try to leave the pension by like 4

3.  Have you ever mispronounced something or misspoke in Spanish and said something totally different than what you meant?

yeah. pecado-sin pescado-fish

4.  Tell me about someone you are teaching.

Well we arent really teaching anyone. We dont have any solid investigators. We have been contacting and looking alot

5.  What was the best thing that happened this week?

We went to a lesson to a less active last night with the bishop. The bishop here is GREAT! We had a great talk and shared a little scripture with the family and it was really good!

6.  What was the hardest thing?

Contacting everyday. We have a tough area.

7.  Are there any fast food restaurants in Cipo?  Other restaurants?  Do people eat out a lot, or mostly stay home?
i think there are a few restaurants here. In Neuquen there is a mcdonalds. and i think subway. I think a lot of people eat at home. i dont know

8.  Did anything funny happen this week?

We got poured on. We were walking and it started to pour and we couldnt go to the pension because we were like 30 min walk away. We ended up finding a building with a roof over that we went under and waited it out for 10 min

9.  Did you learn something new this week?

i got through Mosiah this week. I love Mosiah. it is such a great book. i just love the Book of Mormon. I know it is true with absolutely no doubt. 

10. What was your best meal?

i dont know. we only had 3 lunches this week with members. We had milanesa though and i really like that

11. Does the grocery store in Cipo have a better selection than the one in Rincon? 

no its like the same. The fruit it cheaper though. I like that. I usualñly buy pears, apples and pelons. which are nectarines. 

Love you!

This week in Cipolletti

 

 

 

 

Fruit Trees 

 

The location of Saturday's activity

 

The Cipolletti Zone

 

 

Monday- We had a good pday. We played some soccer and basketball with the other Elders in the other ward here. But towards the end Elder Thorum felt a little sick so we stayed in the pension and he rested.

Tuesday- We had district meeting. We did some service before lunch. We helped clean up a pool. We had some appointments that fell through. So we contacted but didnt have any success.

Wednesday- We had a pretty good lesson today with a less active. We contacted with little success. We talked to a man and compared us (not sure if Argentina and USA or Catholics and Mormons) to River and Boca.

Thursday- We did our weekly planning. We contacted a lot today.  we were contacting and we talked to a guy who lived in Sugarland Texas for 6 months like foreign exchange student. He lived with a family that are members. And they took him to church and he got up sometimes to go to seminary. He had a super good experience with the church. So that is awesome. Unfortunately he is only visiting. He is at college in Buenos Aires. but we are going to go back and try to visit him and his family and see if something comes from it.

Friday- We contacted a little And we did a tsunami in our area to help us try to find new people to teach. We had a little success with that. We had a good lesson with a less active. And today was 6 months in the mission. It is crazy how fast it has gone by.

Saturday- We had a ward activity today. We got permission to go to it from President because it was from like 10 am to 5 pm. We played some soccer and volleyball. When we left we walked and waited for the bus. but it never came so we started walking up to the route to see if we could find it. We walked a long way and we walked a little down the route towards Cipolletti. And then finally a bus came and got in.

Sunday- We had church today which was good. And then we just visited some lñess actives.

Have a great week! 

Con Amor,

Elder Opfar

Hey mom. I'm doing good. Can't believe it has already been 3 weeks here in Cipo and 6 months in the mission.

I got the plan of salvation cut out and the talk by President Monson. I also got a letter from the Egans- the one through pouch mail.

1.  What stood out to you in your studies this week?  Anything in particular give you strength?

So we started the Book of Mormon over again and I have kind of been picking out the things that all talk about laboring with all diligence and with all your might. and teaching with power and authority and looking at the examples of the missionaries in the Book of Mormon

2.  Did any Scripture Mastery verses come in handy this week?

I used a couple when teaching a few less actives this week

3.  What was your favorite meal?

I really love milanesa. it is like a breaded meat that is fried. chicken or carne. I like them both.

4.  Are there any families who take particularly good care of you?
the active members here are all pretty great. like for one they make sure that we have lunches everyweek

5.  When we moved to Texas, I thought that the different animals here were strange (possums, road runners, wild boars, armadillos).  What are some of the animals or birds there that are different from here?

I have seen a few birds that look diferent but I dont know. I haven't seen a whole of of animals. but from what I hear there are like some ostrich looking birds here.

6.  There was a baptism in Rincon, looked like it was maybe from E.Gomez's area, it was J*** L***  Do you know him?

he sounds familiar. I believe I know him.

7.  Are you using your CO2 detector?  Your gas stove makes me nervous.

we turn the gas off when we aren't using it. and we have a CO2 dectector in the pension. There were one put in all the pensions like 2 transfers ago.

8.  Who has been the most influential person to you on your mission?

hmm I dont know.

9. What was the best thing that happened this week?

We got to go to the ward activity on saturday from like 10 am to 5 pm. we got permission from president. that was great. played some soccer and volleyball and ate and just talked with members

10.  What was the hardest thing?

our area here is hard. we contact a lot everyday and get little to no success out of it.

love you guys

Cipolletti..."So, I cut my own hair this week..."

Tyler might have a career as a barber...he cut his own hair and did a pretty good job!

The pension:

Monday- Today was pday so that was good. We visited a family in our area and then we started exchanges. 

Tuesday- We did exchanges today. I was with Elder Hill in his area. That was pretty good. In the night we finished the exchanges.

Wednesday- We had zone conference today down in Nuequen.

Thursday- We did our weekly planning today. Then we went out and conacted. We didnt have much success.

Friday- We went and visited a couple people. And then we got put in a trio because the comp of Elder Hill left. We visited a few people in his area.

Saturday- We went and picked up the new comp of Elder Hill. We contacted a little and we were able to visit a less active family.

Sunday- We had church and that went well. We visited a few less actives. and then in the night i gave myself a haircut.

Hope everyone has a great week!

Con amor,

Elder Opfar

1.  Now that you have been in the area for a couple of weeks, what is your favorite thing so far?  

uhm I don't know. We walk a lot and contact a lot. It is hard. We haven't had a lot of success.

2.  Are there any cool places to spend pday?  (Like the Cristo or the Dino in Rincon.)

No I don't think so. We have only play ping pong and soccer. And today we are going to Cipo 2 building to play basketball and soccer with the elders over there

3.  What was the best thing that happened this week?

I cut my own hair last night so that was nice.

                 Follow up:  Why did you cut your own hair?

                 I cut it myself because Elder Thorum has clippers and I needed a haircut. So I cut it.

4.  What scriptures were you able to use this week to teach that stood out to you the most?  What spiritual thought were you able to share this week?

We were talking to a man about Who is God and used a scripture in Romans. I believe Romans 8:16 about we are heirs of the kingdom. 

5.  Any miracles?  :)

not that i can think of. I'll keep thinking about this

6.  Are there any families in particular who are special to you there?

i like the families here. they are great. and we always have lunch so that's good

7.  Do you have any trouble with mosquitoes?  other bugs?

I think down by the coasts of the river yes but I haven't been bit by any yet. 

8.  Is the food you prepare for yourself (breakfast/dinner) any different in Cipo than what you made in Rincon?

nope. in the morning s oatmeal with a little cereal. and at night sometimes I buy some facturas or also I cook the empanada outside like tortillas and have a little cheese with them

9.  Are there more vegetables and fruit in Cipo?

yes. a lot of fruit. fruit is a little cheaper here too so I have been getting fruit every week so far. There are fields where they grow fruit here and it is almost the time when a lot of it gets ripe

10.  What was the best thing you ate this week?  Anything not so good?

uhm I don't know. it was all good. I didn't have anything bad.

11.  What is your pension like?  (Besides bigger...)

its fairly nice. I like it. I like not having dust/dirt on all my stuff after a day because of wind like in Rincon. 

12.  How was church this week?

we had 38 people at church this week

13.  Any new investigators?

no not this week...

I love you.

Week 1 Cipolletti

Elder Opfar and Elder Thorum

Monday- left Rincon at 4:30 in the morning. Got to Neuquén and waited for Elder Thorum. We had pday and visited a few people.

Tuesday- District meeting.We had a few good lessons today. We walked A LOT.

Wednesday- We had a couple lessons that went well.We tried some contacting but had no success.

Thursday- We did weekly planning. We had 1 lesson but it fell through. So we just contacted and walked a lot.

Friday- We contacted today. And we were able to visit one less active family.

Saturday- We had an appointment fall through. But we were able to visit a few people. and we tried a little contacting again.

Sunday- We went to church. One appointment fell though but we had Ward Council meeting in the night that we went to.

Hope everyone has a great week!

Con amor,

Elder Opfar

1.  How is Cipo?  What is the biggest difference between there and Rincon? 

Things are going well. It was different to get used to. I think we walk more here. and I think our area here is like 3ish times bigger than my area in Rincon. We have the outer edge of the city with the coast by the river and we have a couple rich neighborhoods. it is a big change to see both those in one day.

2.  How was church?  Did you meet a lot of the ward members?  How many people are in the ward and are you assigned to one ward or many?

It was good. 3 hours. we had 37 people at church. some were visiting. There are 2 wards in Cipo and a lot of people attend ward 2.

3.  Were you fed well this week?  What was the best thing you ate?  Did you have anything new?

yeah. we only didn't have lunch 1 day cause the family was traveling but they got home. nothing new. I don't know what the best was

4.  What was the funniest thing that happened this week?

I don't know. I don't remember

5.  What kind of service are you able to do there?

no. we didn't get to do service this week

6.  Are most of the streets paved?  Is it as dusty as Rincon?

like most of the streets are paved. the only like dirt streets are out in the costas. which is part of our area.

7.  Do you walk far to get places?

we take a bus to get to the north costas. because it is a far walk to walk all the way there. We walked A LOT

8.  Did you rely on any scriptures this week to help you get through a hard or unexpected thing?

I started the Book of Mormon over because President challenged us to read it before general conference. and just in 1 Nephi I think 17. With Nephi is like praising the Lord for protecting them and Laman and Lemuel are complaining about the same things. so that helped cause it is all about our attitude.

9.  What is your favorite thing so far about Cipo?

the paved roads. and the fact we have lunch everyday

10.  How do you get along with your new companion?

we get along well. We usually talk Spanish outside the pension and during studies. but at night we talk English.

11.  What was something you learned this week in your studies?

Just in Jesus the Christ. in chapter I think 23 with it wasn't Christ´s time yet to die. and just reading about that. It was just cool to read

12.  Where do you grocery shop?  Is there a large grocery store in Cipo?  

we shop at the Anonima. most cities here in Argentina have an Anonima. 

13.  What was your biggest challenge this week?

one of the days our plans fell through so we were just contacting for hours. and walking a lot. and i was just tired and we weren't having really any success with contacting

14.  Have you seen the other missionaries in your district a lot?  How many missionaries are assigned to each of the 2 wards?  

there are 6 in our ward and 8 in the other. the other has 8 because they have another part of a little city right outside Cipo so they go to church in Cipo

We dont see them as much as we saw the others in Rincon

15.  What do you think you'll do for Pday today?  

With the 6 in your ward, do you tract the same areas or are you each responsible for your own portion of the ward?  Are there sisters or just elders?

yeah there is 1 set of hermanas. no we all have our own area. CIpo is huge. its a pretty big city. Today I think we are going to play some ping pong and soccer. I don't know

ME:  That will be fun.  Must be weird to be in a big city after being in Rincon.  

Do you have any investigators?  Is there anyone who you especially like?  What is Elder Thorum like?

TYLER:    yeah its weird. We only have 2 investigators.

I don't know yet. the members are good. I like them

He is a smart kid. he is tall like me. so that's funny having 2 tall gringos walking around Argentina

Love you!