Dear everyone,
I hope you all had a wonderful Easter (or "Pascua" as they say here down south) this weekend. Uruguay celebrates the whole week, calling it "la semana santa," or the holy week, and everybody stops working and going to school and leaves San Carlos.....so, needless to say, although the week didn't feel slow, there was a lot less going on and a lot more trying to contact people and door-clapping (yes, we still do that, too).
Honorio is doing wonderfully. We found out through casual conversation that everybody in his family is against him talking to us, but also everyone that he works with and many of his friends. But he never even told us! He just would keep telling us how excited he was to get baptized! He and Ana are using a marriage service that works with quick(er) marriages, so today they are going to find out which day of April they are getting married! Although Ana isn't too happy with Honorio meeting with us (because all of her friends have told her that Mormons are crazy and she believed them), she has wanted to get married for a while, so she doesn't have a problem with the fact that his wanting to be baptized sped up the process. Honorio told us a few days ago that "more and more I am convinced that this is the true church." That was music to our ears. He keeps telling us how his life is changing for the better and honestly I love being a part of this conversion process.
We had a wonderful weekend, but it ended with one of those moments that I have felt a few times before in my life: in a period of just five minutes, I went from feeling perfectly fine, to feeling terrible in the stomach-region of my body. We went to meet with Honorio and after a few minutes in his house, I had to excuse myself to go to the bathroom. Then, after returning, just a few minutes later I had to go again. I threw up as quietly as I could as to not disrupt the lesson that Elder Sevilla basically had to teach solo. Then I had to go back one more time.
The night the followed wasn't filled with much sleep...I felt like dying a little bit, actually. My body was just getting rid of everything. Sunday was spent in bedrest after church because I was in no shape to work, but after the evening hit, I felt good enough to get out and start preaching the gospel! And that is just what we did. And we saw great success. We dropped the Tabeira family (a family I talked about last week). Some poeple just aren't ready to change. That was their case. We are teaching other people, and I would report more names if they showed excellent potential, but we'll see how this week goes.
I loved this week. It was a nice reminder of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I am so grateful for what he did for me. I know that most people's favorite Holiday is Christmas, but had there been no Easter, none of it would have been for anything. I love this work. I love it all! And, unlike Elder Sevilla, who goes home next week, back to Honduras (I will miss him. He is my father--my trainer--and I love him dearly), I have plenty of time!! Next week, though, I will be emailing on Tuesday because of changes. I love you all!! You are in my prayers! I must now go and serve the beloved children of God.
LOVE,
Elder Plautz
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