December??

Time in the mission is impossible to understand. I feel like I was just barely in the MTC, but at the same time I feel like I was born here in "filthy" Argentina and Utah is just a wonderful dream I had.. haha! (I don`t hate Argentina.. but I won`t take back the "filthy" comment cause wow... just ask Brayden)

Soo I will get right too it. We have a new investigator!! WOO! Last week a sister in our ward (Hermana Ojeda) called us and told us she had a reference. Her son is a returned (but inactive) missionary, married to a girl named Nadia. They have two kids. So Nadia lately has taken a lot of interest in the church from a couple of conversations with her mother in law. She already knew about the church from her husband, but they just don`t talk much about it. Her and her husband Nicolas are both amazing people. So we talked with Hna Ojeda and set up an appointment last Wednesday. It went sooo well! Hermana Ojeda helped us out so much to make the lesson successful. She even picked up the kids before the lesson so that Nadia and Nicolas wouldn`t have any distractions. My jaw was on the ground the whole time Hermana Ojeda was helping us set up the lesson. WHERE HAVE PEOPLE LIKE YOU BEEN ALL MY MISSION?? We taught the plan of salvation and I have never had such a successful lesson. Nadia is so receptive and agrees/gets excited about everything we teach. We also get along with them really well and laugh a lot so everything is perfect...but I`m trying not to get comfortable haha cause this is too good to be true. The only thing with Nadia is just that she says she wants to take it slow and not get baptized RIGHT away...we`ll see if the Spirit agrees with that or not in the next flew lessons. Right now we have put a date for the 19th of December! Pray for us please :)

Things with Pablo and Tomara are going about the opposite direction. I think they are really great people but WOW they are so passive. We teach them and I know they feel the spirit but every answer we get to the commitments we ask is "Umm...we`ll see" or "we will...try", which are both nice ways to say "no cause we have no self motivation." Gahh. People make things so complicated for themselves! All we ask them to do is read like 10 verses or pray or go to church and they act like we are taking them up Mt Everest. We will see what happens in the lesson we have this week...

Tonight we have a family home evening with a couple families, as well as Pablo and Tomara, and we also invited Nadia and Nicolas. It will be at the house of the Soules family and I`m super excited because the Soules family is amazing and SO funny. We went to visit them last night for a bit and they had me crying from laughing so hard. They remind me of the Leavitts. Always wrestling/hitting/yelling/laughing with each other, but at the same time they are so strong in the gospel and there is so much love in their home because they are all so close and comfortable with each other. I love that! Also, they have a little girl named Martina that looks almost EXACTLY like Kendyl when she was younger. The first time I went to their house I think I just sat there staring at Martina during the whole lesson because my life was flashing before my eyes. She has the same cute "little-Kendyl" voice, but is also crazy and funny and super tom-boyish. It`s weird..

Things are going well with the zone and my companionship with Elder Yeates. Right now we are going to the gym in the mornings with Elder Tannyhill and Searcy and Da Silva. The gym here is about the same as AF Rec... not the best, but it gets the job done. You have no idea how nice it is to be doing REAL workouts again. (It`s pretty nice)

I still feel like I have no idea what I`m doing as a zone leader, but we are getting there little by little. I feel blessed and happy and guided by the Lord as he makes up for my many weaknesses. 

Fast and testimony meeting was amazing yesterday. It was my first time being with my new ward because of stake conference the week before so I introduced myself and bore my testimony. (PS tons of people came to me after saying I speak super well and almost sound native Argentine! BOOM BABY! Ay vamos! ;)) Our ward is so solid and everyone that bore their testimony yesterday just blew me away. So nice to have a breather from all the Atheists in the streets that don`t want to hear anything about religion or hear our message, then come to church on Sunday to be reminded that me and my companion actually aren`t the only ones that believe in what we are sharing. I was so grateful for Sunday and the sacrament and the spirit that exists there.

Les amo!

Elder Jolley

 Thanks so much for the package! I loved the notes, treats, and.... seasoned salt?? That's cool I guess. I`ve been putting it on my eggs in the morning like I did at home and ohhh it's good :) Try it.

Unlike Ryan... I had the patience to actually "frame the stuffing." The Lord is teaching me well. ; )

I'm on a bridge!