Dear everyone,
First of all, every computer lab, it seemed, in San Carlos was closed today. The one we normally went to: closed. Our backup: closed. Our backup backup: closed! WHAT IS THIS!? Really, the only reason I am able to write today is because we got together as a zone to practice Singing for a Stake-wide activity later this month. So here I email from Maldonando, Uruguay, and for some reason, this keyboard is tripping me up. They aren't too different, but they're different enough to frustrate me when I have so little time to email and not enough fingers or brainpower to accomplish this task! Alas, I will try!
It was a really up and down week. The middle of it was really low for Elder Sevilla and me when in a matter of two days, every single one of our investigators with baptismal dates decided to stop listening. All of them. It was so difficult. By the end of that second day, I just didn't know what to do. I could feel nothing but sadness. Not because of me or my companion, but because I realized that we meet so many people with so much potential, but they ultimately have the choice in the matter. And sometimes (in this case, every time) the choice they make is to turn their back on the truth. I don't feel harsh saying that because this is the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. This is the Lord's church and I am here to do His work. And when people decide that they don't want to continue, it hurts. But the next day, after I woke up and still didn't feel any better about having lost all of the people we were teaching, we went to a district meeting and I learned just how amazing of a teacher and leader Elder Sevilla is. He taught a simple lesson on faith that totally changed who I am as a missionary. I doubled my efforts and my faith and we got back in the game and lo and behold, we found a ton of new people to teach. Please pray for success. Elder Sevilla and I don't waste a second. That is to say, we don't waste a second unless my companion is incapacitated! Yeah, on Saturday, he lost his ability to walk because of so rather unexsplainable, yet excruciating pain in an area that we won't discuss any futher. It sufficeth me to say that he was in a great deal of pain and we could work almost all of Saturday and Sunday. But I think he's fine now.
Elder Sevilla and I have been brainstorming about how we can get the members to be interactive with the missionary work and came up with an activity where we're going to --wait for it-- SING! Let me say something that I have just learned from experience: trying to find a Latinos that can sing is like Simon Cowell tyring to find ANYBODY to sing. It just really doesn't happen that much. But out of some tender mercy from the Lord, not only does my companion sing, but he sings well! So we have made an arrangement to a hymn and voila! We're going to sing it to members family by family and while we're singing, the Spirit is going to prompt them with names of people that we can visit. I'm super excited to implement this.
I apologize about how short my letter is today, but we're on a time crunch because of the unfortunate events that happened this morning. I pray that it doesn't happen again next week. The reason it might is because Uruguay in February is immersed in Carnvials and parties in the nighttime street. Every day, ther is a bongo drumline that marches down the street and it is LOUD. And there are people dancing everywhere and sometimes it can be difficult to fall asleep. But since I am a missionary, sleeping isn't that hard because we're always working. I love you all and keep you in my prayers. Remember that God is real and that He is our Heavenly Father. Too many people out here aren't familiar with the name "Jesus Christ." Don't take that for granted. I must now go and serve the beloved children of God.
LOVE,
Elder Plautz
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