Becoming a Missionary - Week 3

Hey everybody!

Here goes week 3 in the Guatemala City CCM. The CCM president's name is Pres. Cox. He´s from California. He said he´s from a city about 45 minutes north of Bakersfield. He's a farmer and he used to be a mission president in Mexico. They took pictures of us the first week and just emailed them to us so I have included them. I learned that I can only send pictures that they take in the CCM. So sorry, but my pics are going to have to wait until I get out in the field. But I’m trying to take a few where I can but there aren´t many places we can take them since they had problems with missionaries and cameras. Just know that they´ll be coming probably the first pday out in the field. The first group of missionaries left last week. I didn´t know them very well but they were pretty cool. We have a bit of free time after deportes so what we do is trade ties. There’s a whole value system where paisleys, gold, and skinny ties are all worth more and silk is worth less since it falls apart in the humidity. I haven´t traded much though. Mostly cuz I haven´t seen any ties I like. I don’t particularly care for gold or skinny so I’m mostly looking for paisleys or anything with a little more color. You can even have a tie ¨skinnied¨ for the price of one other tie or whatever you work out. It just sucks cuz we haven´t gotten any more Nortes and I don’t really like any of the ties people have. We might be getting more next week but we don´t know. This is the time when missionaries (at least nortes) really slow down.

 We got a whole bunch of Latinos but they live on the 3rd floor. We practiced with one of the new districts teaching ¨CCE¨ (como comenzar enseñar/How to begin teaching). They were so fresh. It brought me back (like it was a long time ago) to when I just got here and the 2 weeks helped me with cce. It was cool cuz I learned that my Spanish was pretty good and I am learning stuff cuz the elder I was with told me (in Spanish) that I really helped him and that he learned a lot. FROM ME!!! Wow! That was a huge confidence booster. Later in the week I was sitting in front of our window, and since it is tinted on the outside, when we slid it open, the two panes made a mirror. I was writing in my journal and I looked up and I almost didn´t recognize myself. I looked like an adult! And earlier that day I did the same thing outside. We were waiting to teach and I was looking at the window and a real life missionary was staring back at me! Since then I’ve stopped feeling inadequate and have had so much more confidence in my teaching and in my Spanish. I don´t feel green anymore. It seems like forever since I arrived here but in reality it’s only been 20 days. We are learning so much and are growing together as a district, helping each other learn a concept or if a companionship is struggling we help them sort it out. I LOVE IT HERE IN THE CCM!

BTW, sorry if I repeat anything. I have to write so fast and don’t always remember what I’ve already written. :P The Sundays here are the best. You wake up normal time. Elders have scripture study and hnas go to a general women’s meeting at 8. Then 9:00 sacrament meeting. They asked our district to put together a special musical number for the intermediate hymn. We sang ¨Más Cerca Dios de Tí¨ with the hnas starting out, then splitting into alto sop and then the elders joining in. It was awesome. We had only had time to practice twice for like 10 minutes since they asked us Saturday morning. Everyone has to have a 5 minute talk on one of the principles of the Doctrine of Christ (faith in Christ and his atonement, repentance, baptism, gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end) prepared since they don’t announce which elders/hnas are giving talks until after the meeting has started. I lucked out this week (again) but I have a pretty good talk prepared. At least in my mind. But one of our elders, E. Thomas, gave a talk for the second week in a row! Luckily he had prepared another talk since last week. We were all amazed since he had given one last week. But he rocked it. Then priesthood, where we learn about 1 or 2 ordinances like baby blessings.  Then we go to a district class where we focus on teaching 10 minute lessons. Then, devotionals for days. We have 4 devotionals every day. Pres. Cox always gives two. Then Pres./Hna Provance give one, then we watch a devotional from the Provo MTC. Such great talks. I always feel ¨fired up¨ after pres. Cox´s. Such a spiritual day. I wish I could talk about all of them, but I’m afraid I don’t have time. The food the Zone leaders serve for breakfast is terrible. It’s like a crescent roll with ham in it that the chefs made the night before and left to be served in the morning. We try toasting it in an oven thing we have but it doesn´t help too much. From now on, I’m either fasting or just eating fruit.

We got a new District Leader, E. Thomas. He´s a pretty cool guy. He was born in Texas so he has a lot of Texan mannerisms. He started a thing where we choose (at random) new seats for the next week cuz some of us don’t like sitting in the same spot, or in front of the air conditioner (me), or looking at the same people. 

That's all the time I have. Until next time,

Elder Mattiaccio

[Click here to see Elder Mattiaccio's picture in the Church's Press Release in Guatemala about the upcoming mission changes]