WEEK 40

Hello, everybody!

 

I hope that you all are doing great. The last week was two days short for me but in it there has been many great moments. For one, I appear to be mucocele free. The procedure was quick and painless; the healing stages are going smoothly. It also appears that the last 4-1/2 months of being on bike have been beneficial. Last Monday I finally came into an apartment that had a weight scale. I weighed myself at 218 lbs. I figured that was good since I haven't really cut back on portions especially when energy is needed to pedal throughout the day, but I assumed I was just burning off whatever I put on. However, when I went in for my procedure on Wednesday they weighed me in at 206 lbs. I am somewhat sceptical since I was weighed at the hospital with a digital scale, but I have found within the last month that I seem to have to tighten my belt a bit more when getting dressed in the mornings.

The work in Santa Rosa is going well. I have two great companions in Elder Bacon and Elder Johnson, there are a lot of great people we are teaching, and Santa Rosa appears to not only be the heart of the Santa Rosa mission but a spot for a lot of celebrity sightings. In the last week we have become familiar with a man who owns a dog which recycles and was featured in the newspaper at one time, a certain guy off of the Food Network was spotted, and we spoke with "Jesus."

 

Well, I cannot really validate that last one with the exception of talking to a man named Ricky on the streets the other day. We got to vaugley know him and talk to him about his beliefs, which he then tells us "I am Jesus." Confused, Elder Bacon asks "Well what makes you think that?" He replied, "I feel it, I...I just know it." We then offered him a card and his response was "You want to give me my card?" I then encouraged him by telling him that being Jesus he will probably travel many places and see more people than we will so if he'd be willing to give the card to someone he feels is in need and can use it. He then says "Ok! I can do that. That's a great point." My companions did try to withhold their laughter from the second he stated to be someone other than Ricky but we were not sure how certain he was with what he said or how silly or facetious he was attempting to be. With all that said, he seemed like a great guy.

 

In regards to serious people we are actually teaching there are quiet a few working towards a baptism date. One is named Brian. We had a great lesson with him this past Friday. I would go into detail about it but I am short on time. However, Brian emigrated here to the US, he's been to Fort Lauderdale before (^_^), he is excellent at making sushi, and he's very sincere and humble in wanting to learn. The only hold-up is that he had a date originally set for this coming Sunday but we still have so much to teach him and there are a lot of activities going on that day so we will more than likely have to push his date back. I will not be able to be apart of his baptism since I will be heading over to Winters next Monday. I am not being changed over to a full-time Spanish speaking missionary but I will be working with the Spanish congregation over in Woodland for the next month and we will see how that goes. The summers are pretty hot there but I am thankful that I will be in a car over there and September is nearing.

 

In closing, I hope that each and every one of you are doing great. I happen to be bouncing around a lot but letters and e-mails are always welcomed and encouraged. I look forward to hearing great things and I look forward to sharing more with you all next week. Take good care!

 

With love,

Elder Gallegos

WEEK 39

Hello, everybody.

 

I apologize for not filling you all in with the events of last week. The last four weeks have indeed been like a jump rope: up, down, up, down, up. The good news is that things did end on a good note and it will only get better from there. For one, I will be having a minor procedure done this Wednesday on my lip. Seven months ago I thought I had a small cold sore or fever blister. However, after two months and no progress I figured it had to be something else. It happens to be a lip cyst, there is no pain and it is not a hazard to my health but it is certainly a nuisance. The procedure will only be an hour and everything should be fine after that. Thank you all for the thoughts and notes.

 

As far as the missionary work goes, I was caught by surprise this past weekend when I received news that I would be transferred from Petaluma. I will be in Santa Rosa for a couple weeks and then I will be moving over to Winters, which is around Woodland. I do not yet know what assignment awaits me in Woodland but I will let you all know once I get word. For the moment I am in a triad or tri-panionship with Elders Bacon and Johnson. I will certainly miss the cool breeze of Petaluma especially during the summer months, but I am excited to see what work will come forth with Elder Bacon, Elder Johnson, and I in the town of Santa Rosa.

 

Since I have left Petaluma I will also be missing Jack's baptism, but I am happy to have been part of his journey. It will also be something great for the Elder who is taking my place to be part of. By the way, I received word from the Elders in Kelseyville that Rex, who I began teaching, was baptized this past Saturday. So that is just how missionary work goes.

 

The past week has been slow so there are not many experiences to relate. There are a few photos I wanted to share with you all but it will have to wait for next week since my camera is packed away. I hope that all is well with each and every one of you and may it continue to go well. I look forward to writing you all again next week minus the lip cyst. :)

 

With love,

Elder Gallegos

WEEK 36

Hello, everybody!

 

I hope that most of you have the day off because of the 4th of July, but wherever you are and whatever you're doing I hope that you're enjoying your day. Our day is off to a good start. We're sending e-mails this morning from the Cox family's home because the library is closed. It's good to not have my e-mail interrupted by a timer but I will not be able to include any pictures today as I intended. My camera cable is in my bag at the church. We left our bags there yesterday because we intended to come back later in the day to finish some planning we had to do. We wanted to lighten our load as we had to bike and see a few people right after church. However, after our visits and after dinner the Spanish Elders needed to do a quick exchange since they both had to be at two places at once. We ended up finishing at around 8:30 and haven't yet had the chance to make it back to the church. I'll be sure to include some pictures next week, which will be the week before we get news on transfers.

 

As I said though, the day is going well. The Cox family invited us over to breakfast and it was good since a missionary's breakfast consists of cold cereal, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or pancakes on occasion. They prepared hashbrowns, eggs, and meat for us. They're a great young family with a 4-year-old, Enoch, and a 2-year-old, Oakley. As I type, they're making homemade ice cream which is a sweet treat for the weather here in Petaluma.

 

We also had a few good experience this morning. Between breakfast and e-mail time we had to go meet the Spanish Elders to give them our key so they can get into the chapel to play basketball. On our way there we met the nice guy-who still wishes to remain anonymous-that gave us some money at the pizza restaurant. He jokingly asked if we're getting fed well, because he says that he called the church headquarters and he talked about how hard working we are and that we should be fed so much that nonmembers shouldn't have to feed us. Of course he meant it in good humor and he then wished us a happy and safe fourth of July.

 

As we were heading back to the Cox's home we waved at a guy named Gregory. We just kept riding when he suddenly said "Are you from a church?" We stopped to talk to him for a moment. He just returned from serving overseas and he says he is looking for a church to go to. He wants to put his past behind him and he wants to overcome his addiction. He also offered me a pair of sunglasses he said didn't fit him, because I have been riding around the last two days with glasses that were missing an arm, because they recently broke but they do protect from the sun, dirt, bugs, and other things as we're riding. We met him at his house and he thanked us for allowing him to help us. He appreciated the service we give and he was glad to be of help and we're looking forward to meeting with him again soon.

 

As for the rest of the day, we have dinner with the Dixon family and we're more than likely going to watch a firework display from our house. As for the people we are teaching and finding, we have been meeting quiet a few people but they have been hard to get hold of but good things will happen in the coming weeks. We have been teaching a young adult named Jack Bartley. He is dating a member of our church for some time now. He's going to school to be an EMT and he does canoeing and spends a lot of free time with his sweetheart. His biggest challenge has been talking to his parents about his desire to be baptized. Yes, he is old enough to make his own decision but it is something he has wanted to share with them out of respect for them. We simply continued to encourage and support him and text him a scripture reading assignment each week.

 

Jack came to church yesterday and while he was talking to us he asked "So what are you doing on July 27th?" We told him that we had nothing planned yet for that day and he then asked if we wanted to come to his baptism. He finally talked to his parents and they had a good talk and they're supportive of him. He's happy and rightfully so his girlfriend is happy for him too. They're looking forward to making the plans together such as who will give a talk, what songs he would like sung there, and so forth. Again, I haven't had the chance to meet with Jack much because of his schedule but he has definitely made a lot of positive changes in his life in his life and we are happy for him.

 

Well that's just a brief overview of the happenings here. I hope that everything is going well with each and every one of you. It's unreal how fast time goes by. 2011 is already halfway gone. Soon enough I will be looking forward to hearing about all of the latest happenings with each and every one of you. Take good care of yourselves and each other.

 

With love,

Elder Gallegos