Well, I don't have a ton of time today, but I figured I should write and let you all know that I have been exalted. Ha.
I thought my last area was paradise... And if that's the case, I must have just been introduced to paradisaical glory. Ha. Who knew, it's just a three hour bus ride away from Santo Domingo.
Ocoa is INCREDIBLE! I wake up every morning and literally cannot believe my eyes. We live in a little bowl-like valley up in the mountains, EVERYTHING is green and gorgeous, the temperature gets up to about 80 during the day, and drops down to about 65 at night. Ha. Our house is Ginormous. We live with two other elders at the moment, but they might put another companionship in with the huge flow of incoming 18 year-olds. We have three king size bedrooms, and each one has an attached king size bathroom, not to mention our entryway, dining room, and kitchen areas. Ha. Also, we have a hot water heater.... My life just got SO much better! I had no idea how much I missed warm showers!!! It is HEAVENLY!
My new companion is the shiz. His name is Elder Jonathan Griffith Logue, from Ogden Utah. He was raised Catholic and was studying to be a Priest (Father) when he met the missionaries at age 17. He played football and basketball his whole life, he is also a certified skydiver, scuba diver, and he has a Ghost Hunting Licence. Ha. He's hilarious. He and I get along SUPER well. I hopped off the bus where he was waiting to pick me up, and instantaneously we started laughing, and haven't stopped since! We have had an incredible first week together, and I'm only looking forward to more fun and more success!
The people of my old area will be sorely missed, but I am already in love with the people here! I found yet another new home, and already have two Ocoan Moms. Ha. I think I explained it best in an email I just sent to a friend: "I just had my heart ripped from my chest... But just like you explained, I arrived here in Ocoa with a fantastic companion and a team of incredibly Hermoso miembros waiting to put me back together again. :) and just like that, I'm in love with this place! I can hardly believe that I'm still on earth... This place is incredible, and the people are even more loving and accepting than my family in Independencia. Ha. I love Horcruxes." Ha. The Horcruxes (Harry Potter) reference was because of a previous email in which transfers had been explained as such: "when you leave an area it sometimes hurts, but it doesn´t mean you have to take your heart away from there. It just means you have to open your heart up a bit more to let more lovins in! A big chunk of my heart is at home, and another in my first area. Kind of like horcruxes I guess. ;)"
Anyway. This week was great!
Funny story: We were in Mama Juana's house helping her teach Seminary on Thursday night, and one of the kids bumped the wall he was leaning against, and out popped a Tarántula... It fell out of the space between the wall and the cement floor, and landed on it's back; black, hairy legs flailing and all. ha. It was HUGE! At least 4 times the size of the one I had back at home. It was definitely unexpected. lol. But the kids in the class acted like it was nothing. One of them grabbed the nearest broom, and swept it out the front door, then another one grabbed a rock off the dirt road and smashed it. I was blown away. Ha. It was so cool! These people rock!
Also, on Saturday I had my first baptism here in Ocoa. His name is Ivan. We've been teaching him nightly since I arrived, and he was GOLDEN! He is already preparing to serve a mission, and we just ordered him his very own Preach My Gospel and a copy of the Mission Manual. We're gonna start teaching him the lessons out of PMG, and then have him go on splits with us a bunch so that when his year mark hits, he will be 100% ready and prepared to serve the Lord full time! I'm so excited for him! Also, our branch president invited Elder Logue and I to participate in his Confirmation! It was an awesome experience! I don't think there's a better phrase than "receive the Holy Ghost" stated with the proper power and authority! This church is so flippin TRUE!
Sorry, I know I promised photos this week, and I promise I took a MILLION. But the computer is being temperamental, and I don't have time to figure it out. Ha.
I love you all! I hope all is well, and I hope you all had an incredible Thanksgiving! Keep working on those Gratitude Journals! And if you want to, feel free to send me 3 or 4 Gratitude entries in your weekly emails!
Much Love,
Elder Cade Mooney
Great insight of the LDS mission. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteDouglas Logue, Johnathan Logue's Dad