¡Hola! - Monday, June 25, 2012

¡Familia! 

¿Como están ustedes?

Everything here is going really well! I can´t believe another week has already passed!

This last week has been really good. :) 

The weather has been semi bipolar, ha. It´s either raining, or SUPER hot! And the people here are SO funny about it! If it´s hot, they give us fresh squeezed juice, usually Chinola (passion fruit), but we´ve had Guanavana (It's a green, prickly fruit with white flesh inside, and black seeds; it kinda tastes like Sprite), Piña (Pinapple), Mango, Zapote (I don´t even know what the fruit looks like, ha), and all kinds of fruit punch/juice mixtures. Ha. It´s HEAVENLY! But if it´s raining outside the people won't leave their houses, and they won't let us leave their houses unless we show them that we have our umbrellas. Ha. They HATE the rain! It´s super funny!

Our investigators are still progressing. :) Jonathan (he´s 22, and has been taking the lessons for about a month now) told us last night that he wants to serve a mission! It was super cool! He already has such a strong testimony, and he knows that the gospel will truly bless his life, AND the lives of others! 

Yerick (a man we´ve been teaching since I got here) was baptized on Saturday, and he asked me to bear my testimony at the Baptismal Service... Ha. It was SUPER scary. I had to get up and talk in Spanish in front of 40ish Dominicans. Ha. But the spirit definitely helped me out. I did my best, and then just prayed that they understood me. Ha.

We taught Olga and Kenia (two sisters that are also next door neighbors) about the Law of Chastity this week... and we found out that neither of them are married to their "husbands." I guess that´s normal here tho. NO one gets married. They just move in together, say "we´re married" and then have kids, and live a normal married life. Ha. It´s because it costs a lot of money to get married, so they just skip it cuz they can't, or don´t want to afford it. So we talked with them about it, and they both are gonna talk to their "husbands" and see what they can do. They are both really faithful, and are already living all the other commandments! Hopefully it all works out!

Everything in the house is still good. :) We´re all getting along great! 

We forgot to buy a Botellon (a big five gallon jug of clean water) on Saturday, so yesterday we had to use Clorox to purify all the water we used for cooking and teeth brushing and such. Ha. I definitely will never take clean/hot water for granted ever again! Ha. 

My companion and I are still getting along well. We´re both a little on the prideful side sometimes.... Ha. We both like to be right and we both always think we´re right. So we butt heads at moments, but we work it out pretty quick. Ha. He´s a great kid, and he works hard AND he´s obedient. So I really can´t complain! 

I´m outta time! 

I love you all! Hope things are going well!

This Church is true! I know it is!! Never lose faith! 

Love, 

Elder Cade Mooney

Week 2! - Monday, June 18, 2012

From: Cade Mooney Date: Mon, Jun 18, 2012 at 4:01 PM
Subject: Week 2!

Wow! I can't believe it's already been a week! Time flies!

FYI When I write home I'm typing as fast as I can on a Spanish keyboard, and the computer doesn't have English spell check... Ha. Please forgive me.

This week has been really great! And by great I mean BUSY!

We've had between 5 and 7 lessons everyday, and everytime we get the chance we contact!

Our investigators are AWESOME! They are all super receptive, and they all have some sort of inborn faith that I will never understand. They all LOVE God with everything they've got. And they love learning more about "La Palabra" as it's called here. Ha.

Spanish is coming along ok. Ha. I get laughed at and corrected quite often, lol. But I'm learning, and all the people are super good about helping me.

I am doing really well! My companion and I are still getting along, and I'm still loving the work!

I'm really out of time this week. It also feels like SO MUCH and SO LITTLE has happened this week. Ha. I don't even know what to write... Sorry! I'll send some pictures though. :)
I hope you're all doing really well! I love you all!

-Elder Mooney

I can't figure out how to attach pictures. I'll figure it out next week. Ha.

P.S. The mail situation here is:
All letters and packages and everything else goes to our mission home address:
Elder Cade Mooney
C/ Hatuey #73
Urb. Los Cacicazgos
Santo Domingo, Republica Dominicana
then the assistants distribute it to our Zone leaders, then our ZLs give it to the District Leaders, and they give it to us. Ha. Long process. So I apologize.

A Whole New World.... Ha. - Monday, June 11, 2012

From: Cade Mooney
Date: Mon, Jun 11, 2012 at 4:12 PM
Subject: A whole new world.... Ha.

Wow. 
I am here in the DR in the mission field. I am a real life missionary... Weird.

This week has been good. :) Definitely an eye opener!

We finished up our stay at the MTC with In Field Orientation, which was two days of demonstrations and explanations of what we should expect and what is expected of us in the mission field. It was really good, and they actually made it really fun!

Then on Tuesday morning, we said our goodbyes, and got in our different cars to head out to the mission!

They took us to a church where we had a short interview with the President, who is one of the nicest dudes I´ve ever met, and then we took pictures and filled out our ¨get to know you¨ forms. After that we went into the chapel where they ¨presented¨ us to our trainers. Then we had a few hours of orientation/instruction and then they sent us off with our new companions!

My trainer is Elder James Alfredo Pemberton the 4th. Ha. For real. He is from Las Vegas, Nevada, but his dad is from Puerto Rico (so he´s brown) and he speaks Spanish really, really well, so everyone just assumes he´s a Dominican. Ha.

We live in a 4 man house with Elder Brezack and Elder Arias. Elder Brezack is from Nebraska, and he is super funny and easy to get along with. Elder Arias is from Costa Rica, and only speaks Spanish, but he understands English perfectly. Ha. I guess he´s just more comfortable with Spanish, cuz we all know he can speak it, he just never does. They´re all super chill, and I think this next 12 weeks with them is gonna be great! :)

I´m definitely a greeny. Ha. My first mistake was going to the bathroom with out asking for instructions... Ha. I put the toilet paper in the toilet, which is a no no. I guess it clogs the pipes. And I we also didn´t have any water in the Tanaco (the tank on top of our roof), so the toilet wouldn´t flush. Ha. I had to get a bucket and flush it that way.

Also, the water has run out in the middle of my shower twice this week. Ha. It´s actually pretty funny cuz I´m covered in soap and I just have to stand in the shower and yell until someone brings me a bucket full of water to rinse off with..

This is definitely gonna take some getting used to. Ha. Hot water is a thing of the past... Also, anytime we want water we have to hook up the ¨Bomba¨ (the Pump). We hook it up to a spicket outside, and put the other end of the hose down in this HUGE hole in the ground that's full of water, then the pump fills up our pipes, and after they´re full it fills up a big tank on the roof. Then gravity caries it back down. Ha. No water pressure. Just gravity. We don´t have a shower head, just a PVC Pipe sticking out of the wall. lol.
No air conditioning. Just sweat and fans; when we have power. When we don´t have power, just sweat. Ha.
Also, cockroaches. And Ants. EVERYWHERE. Ha. We don´t have windows, just bars. So all kinds of critters can come in. Including geckos. :)

It´s different. But it´s a super good different. :) I´m loving being a missionary. :) Our investigators are all super amazing, and all the people here are unbelievably kind, and generous.

The work is hard, but it´s SO worth it! I had my first baptism on Friday, which doesn´t really count cuz I only taught her twice before her baptism, but seeing her baptized and then receive the Holy Ghost in sacrament meeting yesterday was AMAZING! It makes all the heat, and the walking, and the bugs, and every other hard times worth it! 

This work is incredible! It brings SO much happiness to people! I can´t believe the changes I´ve already seen in peoples lives in this one short week. I´m lovin' it! :) I know the church is true, and I am so grateful for the things I´ve been blessed with. This is gonna be the ride of my life!

Anyway, I´m out of time. Sorry it´s so short. I love you all! I hope things are all going well!

Love,

Elder Cade Mooney