A New Prophet‏

email dated 4-7-08
So Conference Weekend is very different in Uruguay. For starters, it doesn't start until 1 in the afternoon. It will be especially weird in October when it is a 5 hour difference again and it starts at 3! Also, I didn't get any ice cream after Priesthood Session. Also, I had to watch the Sunday Morning Session in Spanish, which isn't really that bad, because I understand Spanish now. But I still hated it. You could hear their real voices when they stood up to speak, as if to taunt you, and then a very intruding deep Spanish voice would come in and drown them out and fill your ears with the Spanish translation. It hurt my soul because I wanted to hear their real voices. My investigator fell asleep. It was kind of frustrating.

Either way, Conference was still very edifying and enjoyable. Something about being a missionary made those 10 hours of session go by ALOT faster. I think that it was because we were being taught the gospel instead of having to teach to somebody. So it was, in every sense of the word, a vacation for us. I enjoyed Conference immensely in that aspect. I think also what made those 10 hours go by faster was a more mature Andy Shepherd. When a session ended I couldn't believe that it was already over. I wasn't immature before, but Conference sessions always did feel like 2 hours to me before the mission. This time it went by so fast. Anyway, it was a good conference weekend.

My report is that Elder M. Russell Ballards address was my favorite one, or maybe second favorite next to Elder Bendars talk. Elder Ballard spoke of motherhood and families. It made me homesick. I longed for those feelings of home that he was reminding me of as he spoke. But what touched me about his talk was the respect he gave to the word Mother. I loved the advice he gave. If I can quote him, he said "families need unstructured time!" I loved that he said that. He is a wise man.

Elder Bednars talk about prayer changed me. And, I want to add, that I applauded when he said "Missionaries are called to be full time teachers, NOT full time finders." He asked the membership to stop praying for the missionaries to do their own jobs for them. But more impacting, was how carefully and clearly he tied prayer with action and that it is much more than saying the prayer. His reminder that saying "thy will be done" is not enough really impacted me. I always just pray, and then in the end say "and if you don't want any of this it is cool, I understand it is your will", more or less, but I don't say it in those words. But that isn't faith in me, nor am I using prayer the way I need to. I need to remember to seek His will, not just accept it.

So that is enough of that. You all saw the same conference I did. I don't need to tell you what happened. So I will tell you something cool that you don't know. A really nice man from Rama 5 here in Artigas gave me a guitar!!!! He is from Chile, and we had gone to visit him because we were preparing for a cultural activity that we were putting on in the stake center, and we wanted his help. He suggested some music and brought out a guitar. He began teaching us a song from Chile and I was singing along and he stopped and commented that he thought I had an hermosa voice. He asked if I played guitar. I said yes and he handed me the guitar and went to his room and grabbed another one. We began playing together and singing. After 45 minutes of what was supposed to be a quick 15 minute visit I began feeling guilty because I really enjoyed playing guitar and singing with this man. I politely told him that we needed to get going. We called a taxi and as we were waiting he talked to me about music a bit. I told him that I really missed music, and that playing guitar with him made me feel like I was home with my dad or my brothers playing music together. He then said, "take that guitar then. It's yours." I told him I couldn't. He told me he had 4 others. I still was hesitant. He said "Look, I know how it is. Music is like breathing for you. You need that guitar. Take it. If you feel like it, at the end of your mission mail it back to me before you fly home." .... So I took it. I have a guitar now. I told him he was saving me from la muerta musical, the musical death, and that I wouldn't forget it. He was SO nice. And now I have a guitar to play at the end of the day after I have written in my journal, or on Pdays, or whatever spare minute I may have. I have had it over a week and I can feel it making a difference, and not just that I have callouses on my fingertips again, but I really feel healthier. I use the guitar for good and not for evil. I am content.

Well, I must be going. It is that time again. I hope that everyone is doing well! Love yáll!!

Andy