Email 8-22-11

Hello all,

So I decided that I would just take an email and describe to you what the wonderful world of Paraguay is like in the eyes of Elder Beatty.

So number one. In my area where I am stationed, there are only a few paved streets. Very rarely do you come across a road that is paved. If it is paved it is paved very badly, but oh well its paved. This street could be a 2 way street or a 1 way street. There are no traffic laws whatsoever. So you can drive pretty much drive as fast as you want; as close to everyone else as you want; or whatever you want practically. Its kinda cool. I would like it because if someone is slow you just juice it past them. There are mostly small cars and very small motorcycles or scooters that will never pass 200cc´s. Usually if driving either or both of these types of vehicles they will try to cram as many people that is humanly possible to stuff in that car. Once or twice I have seen people holding their babies outside the window because it's safer than having them almost get crushed inside the car. The most people I have seen on a motorcycle is probably 5, I think. The streets that are not paved or some have just plain dirt which are layed with a shale stone called empidrada. We call this Satan´s rock because it practically annihilates your feet through your shoes. Mostly because after the rocks have been rained and driven on a couple times the points of the rocks just seem to poke out. I would have to say we are walking on that 70 percent of the day. Oh we love it.

One thing I thought was cool was that everywhere they have these security boxes. Part of your rent is spent to pay someone to sit in the box at night so that they can call the police if things go south fast. I thought that was pretty cool, until I saw practically all these guys in every box just drinking and smoking hehe. There are dogs EVERYWHERE!! It's crazy how many homeless dogs you see. One story about dogs was that me and Elder Hewitt were walking at night to a lesson and we were just talking and weren´t paying attention and this HUGE dog was in front of us and about to bite our heads off. Elder Hewitt taught me this trick about dogs. All you gotta do is reach down like your gonna grab a rock to throw at them and they run away. Well I put it to the test and sure enough the dog went running back to its house still barking at us. But it was still way cool. I thought I had the force.

Most people here live in open houses. They usually have 1 or 2 closed off rooms just to sleep in but everything else is open. Their kitchens and all of it just has an open wall to outside because the weather here will usually permit that. They usually all have fences around their houses so you have to clap them to get their attention. Its pretty rare if anyone has more than a motorcycle. Usually the very high middle class have cars and the high poorer class have motos.

There are all these things called dispensas. Its practically when people take the front room of their house and make it into a small store. You can find your basic needs, coke, beer, cigarettes, porn, basic food items, cookies, wafers, some variety of sodas, and probably other arrays of items that I have not yet encountered. The money transfer here is for every dollar you can get about 4mil guaranis. So practically 1 guarani is worth nothing. 1 guarani will get you 4 peices of this bread called pan de agua or ¨agua bread¨ it is very yummy and I find that it is about the closest thing to american bread so yes we buy very very much agua bread and go through it very very fast as well. 2 mil guarani will buy you a very cheap roll of cookies. 4 mill of guarani will buy you some wafers that are very very nice. 500 guarani will buy you 1 egg. so on and so forth.

If you get to eat with the people, they will usually give you something that is COVERED in oil. Noodles covered in Oil or rice covered in oil. I guess they just assume we like oil or thats just how they eat things. the fast food that they have here are empinadas. If you don´t know what it is google it.

We have about 35 people in our ward. That is not how many members there are. Most of them live too far from the chapel to walk there every Sunday. Our bishop joined the paratroopers in Paraguay when he was 16 years old. He is very faithful and very strong in his testimony. I´m greatful for his testimony to the people in our ward and they are always learning from his example, as am I. Our ward mission leader is a 69 year old man named Irala. He works everyday in his chacra, planting manioca. An honest hardworking man that is trying to do his best in the gospel. They rest of the pèople that usually come to church fluctuates because there is never usually the same people there. There is about a 3 week rotation. And it greatly depends on the weather. If its raining no one will come. Or if its too hot no one will come. But thats what makes it fun. Its always a challenge to get them there.

Everyone is open to your message. You really won´t find a person that will just shut you out at first. They will always be open and gracious about having you in their homes. They will always give you the best seats and offer you any kind of food that they have. The hardest part for these people is trying to see that there is a change required to receive blessings. People are just content to be where they are and have what they have and not progress.

The thing we are here to do is to help people to understand what it takes to become more happy. This is a gospel of love. God loved us that He created a plan for us to have a body. He loved us even more, so He sent us his Son so that we could have a way to return. Jesus loved us so much that he suffered and died for our sins. God now has restored His gospel on this earth because He wants his love to spread to every nation, kindred, and tongue. I know that the love of God is real. I see it as it changes peoples lives. As they turn to the love of God they are able to accomplish things they never thought was possible. I hope that you all know that God loves you. Not just us as a people but every single person individual. And He knows you. He knows your joy and He knows your suffering. And He is there for you to lean onto when you need help. I know that is the message we carry. I will continue to carry it in the rain, wet from the water, or in shine, wet from the sweat of my back. I know this gospel changes lives and its the reason we all can sacrifice ourselves to have it. I love you all and I wish you best.

Amo a mi familia

-Elder Beatty

Pictures 8-15-11

Email 8-15-11

Hello everyone. How are you all doing?

I´m doing just great here in good ol Paraguay.  It is increasingly getting hotter and hotter here and wow! does it just annihilate my body and my brain.  I feel like a guy who just came from the desert to live in a humid place.  Oh wait that is me!!! hehehe not.  No, but really its so hot and my trainer just keeps saying that it is going to get hotter and hotter.  Oh Baby Bring it On.  Things have been going well here for all of us.  We have been having some really good success in finding people lately.  For the last two weeks we have found 27 new people.  Oh ya.  We got one of our investigators to have a baptismal fecha and its for the 8th of October.  It has to be so far away because he has to get married with his wife and she has NONE of her paperwork done.  Its ok because we have been working with him in setting goals and getting everything all set.  He is way cool because he has such a good aura around him.  He is naturally a good person.  He doesn´t smoke, drink, look at porn, and he is continuing to get a higher education.  Its way sweet to share scriptures with him and get him to talk about his life and how it has helped him grow.  

My Spanish is coming along.  heheheh or you could say so.  I am progressing.  I have already begun to learn some Guarani which is a total blast to learn.  Its crazy because when you use it with the people they freak out and are like ¨wow, a white man can speak guarani. what magic is this.¨ Its beeen a great time to get to learn this language and I have so much to learn its good because I can never truly get bored of how to speak, because there are so many different ways to say things.  

One thing that has been so hard for me lately is that we don´t have anyone who is really ready to be baptized.  Just like Elder Ramsay Anderson has said in his last emails that just because we aren´t getting baptizms doesn't mean we aren´t working hard.  We walk all day from appointment to appointment and sometimes we show up and they are drunk or they aren´t home, or they pretend they aren´t home to not answer the door, or some other lame excuse to not meet with us but its ok.  We trudge on to our next appointment.  Sometimes we come home and we haven´t met and taught anyone and I feel like a horrible missionary.  I feel like what I´m doing doesn´t make a difference, but then I have to look back and see where I have come from.  I have grown more spiritually and mentally in the last few months then I have in my entire life.  I have come to know my Savior as my best friend.  After all these trials and problems that we are coming to see they are nothing in comparison to what the Savior felt in his sacrifece for us.  We had a talk in the MTC and it talked about how great will be our joy as missionaries if we bring save it be 1 soul unto Christ.  but then he told us that the joy will be even greater when we have made that one soul that we have brought to God our own soul.  

I have only to begun to appreciate what these people are beginning to teach me.  We see so often here as we are walking, problems that are only seen in some of the most horrible areas in the USA.  Already down here I have grown to appreciate so many things that I have taken for granted back home.  I know that I have only begun to become the man that I am supposed to become after my mission.  The success of my mission will not only be the number of people I have brought to come closer to Christ but it will also be the style of life that I choose to live for myself when I return.  We all as missionaires give all for the Lord and for the people.  Those who haven´t learned to lose themselves in the work will only come back and repeat where they were before their missions.  But those who come back; and with a renewed conviction to become a better person then they were before their missions, will be the people that will continue to serve the Lord their entire lives in serving and loving others.  

I thank you all for your support and for your love while I am serving.  I only hope to make you and the Lord proud during my time here in Paraguay.  

Yo amo a mi familia, para siempre.

`-Elder Beatty

Email 8-8-11

YAHHHHHHH Paraguay............

Well I have been here for officially 2 weeks now.  WOWOWOWOW its crazy to think that I've still got a whole lot of time to still get some of my groove going down here in the good ol area of East Paraguay.  

Everything went pretty well this past week.  There was even less rain which is kind of a confort and a discomfort because that means that it is going to start to get hot.  Really, really, really hot.  Oh man,  It wouldn´t be much of a worry except they have yet to install an airconditioning unit inside our house.  hehehe oh well.  This past week was pretty much the same.  The two baptisms that we were planning for the 2 girls fell through.  The other girl decided to go to the other church instead and her sister doesn´t want to get baptized alone.  Its so crushing because they are so close to being baptized but now they are so far away.  I guess now all we can do is rely on the strength and spirit of the Lord to do its job in bringing those people back into the fold and arms of God.  We are in good spirits and still pressing forward in the work and word.  Even though it was a setback we can only do so much.  We were kinda crushed but we are doing alot better now.

We found a TON of new investigators this last week.  We found 2 families and a bunch of other people to total up to 13 people.  Its awesome because that was one of our hardcore goals that we had as a district was to find lots and lots of other people to teach.  We were just walking down this street and this guard called us over to talk and he said that one women across the street was super super sick and so we ran over there to see what was up and we waltzed down stairs and there was this super old and sick lady.  We gave her a blessing and said a prayer.  We have gone back a couple times to see how she was doing and now we have started to teach the family so everything is starting to fall into place.  We also got an awesome reference to a family that lives clear and the wahzoo out there.  We started teaching about our purpose and teaching that we are here to be tested and by being tested we are growing to come closer to God.  They really liked it and hopefully we can go back and get some more lesson time in.

The only problem that we are having is with the people.  They are SOOOOO laid back.  Think of the most laidback person you can think of and times him-her by 222222222222 and thats how much more laidback these people are.  They aren´t willing to take the chance to change their lives because they have accepted what their life is comprised of and have gone with it.  Things like going to church, stopping drinking and smoking and stuff all associated with the gospel is really hard for these people to accept because they don´t want to change.  But that's where we come in and help them to see that they aren´t just changing for themselves.  They are changing for their families, and for God.  Its awesome to see the motiviation that can bring.  But its still hard because you can´t teach these people each and every single concept of the gospel.  Its a step by step process and I´m loving it because it has really returned me to the basics of the gospel and why they are sooooo important in our lives.

Everything else is going well.  We are living off Gods greatest creations.  Eggs and Popcorn YES............. hahaha but really even though things are rough sometimes I feel that love of the Lord in my life because he is helping me become the person that I need to become to teach the people and to be the person I need to become when I am done with my mission.

I´m sorry this email is so short I have just had so many other things on my mind that I didn´t know what to say.  I hope the Spirit of the Lord is in your life that you can come closer to the person who loves you most.

Yo amo a mi familia, para siempre.

Elder Beatty

Pictures 8-8-11

Pictures in Paraguay

 This is Presten, Dallin, and Rush at the MTC.















This is Presten by a River in Paraguay

 This is a picture of Presten's apartment. Looks pretty cramped















 These are all the new pictures in Paraguay. Presten is the fourth from the right. Sorry the picture is so fuzzy














 He also saw some red dirt that reminded him of home!

















 A paved street in paraguay......still looks pretty bumpy to me

Email 8-1-11 First Email from Paraguay!

Hello allllllllllll................

Well this is my first official email in the country of Paraguay.  I wish that I had more time to try and write all that has happened to me in the last week.  Ok first off.  We arrived in Asuncion and met immediately President Callan and his wife.  They were so cool and open to see all 19 of us missionaries come in off the plane ready to get to work.  He told us later that he has never seen so many missionaries after 2 days of traveling be so pumped to be in the mission field.  We went and ate some weird food that I had never even seen before in my life.  It was like a scone but it was chicken.  It was weird but good at the same time.  We then went into the office and then they gave us some brief orientations about what was going down about mail and all that.  It was crazy and then we all got to sleep in what they call the "cave" because they just stuffed all the missionaries in there.  Then we woke up in the morning and went to sign our documents to let us stay here in Paraguay.  We then went back and met our trainers.  

My trainer is Elder Hewitt from South Jordan Utah.  He has 3 months left so that means the time that he has left will be with me here in what we call Ciudad de Este or a different closer area of Presidente Franco.  Yes that is the name of the place we are going to be living its a town thats a little smaller but still crazy.  We spent all of Wednesday traveling on the bus across Paraguay so that was way cool that we got to see the whole country on the first day.  Elder Marple and Elder Varney were traveling with their companions as well on the same bus so it was great to see them.  Elder Varney got a native companion.  hehehehehe He didn't want one because his Spanish was so bad.  But hey its ok.  Alright we arrived in Ciudad de Este and got a taxi to Presidente Franco.  Then immediately Elder Hewitt told me that we had a appointment with 2 girls that just arrived from vaccion and had a baptismal date really close.  So we walked quite a distance probably about 2 miles to their house and when we arrived they were there with their mom just chillin watchin tv.  We went in and WOW........ I didn't understand anything they were saying........... Nothing at all............  I don't want to brag but I thought in the MTC my Spanish was probably one of the top in the class but out here... it was nothing.  I just sat there and smiled and occasionaly nodded heheheheh like I even knew what was actually going on.  Sad story.  I guess they didn't feel so good about their baptismal date so we planned to come back tomorrow and talk about it more.  Well we went back the 2 miles to our apartment.  Thats what the pictures are by the way.  And Elder Hewitt says that this is the nicest apartment he has been in so far.  whooooooooooo party.  I didn't sleep at all...... I had a dream that you guys (my family) were all speaking Spanish and I wasn't allowed to know what you said because I wasn't good enough to hear.  Sad :D but its ok.

I semi woke up the next day and began the days work.  We began by running.  I told my comp that I didn't care if I had to drag him with me but we were going to run.  Little did I know what I had asked for.  There are ALLLL these hills everywhere.  I couldn't believe it.  I thought Paraguay was supposed to be flat.  So me and my comp didn't make it that far but its ok.  We finished up all our study and set out onto the road.  We walked probably what was like 4 miles to our first appointment which went ok.  It was alot better because I actually got to speak Spanish.  I practiced the first lesson and it went well.  I still have alot to learn obviously.  Then we walked what was like another 4 miles to our next appointment.  All in all we walked alot ok.   I sure did ask for it... not being physically tired in the MTC, because I sure am tired all the time now.  But its all good.  

One quick story that I wanna share is that it is has been pretty rainy this whole week and we have been complaining alot about it because it is really hard to walk in and to get arouund to all our appointments.  So we finally got a break one day as we were walking to the bishops house.  We felt the sun come out and we could feel its bright glory and we were wanting to just lay out in the street and tan but nope we had to keep going.  We walked about 10 minutes and the rain started coming down again.  So we ran to the cover of a tree and started putting our raincoats on when a women way far back across the street who lived in this really really nice house that had an electric wire over the fence beckoned us to come as she opened up the electric gate.  So we went in and 2 minutes later the sun was out again.  ahhhhhhhhhhh stupid sun... we were just sitting there in this really nice house and my comp turns to me and says dude, This is the nicest house I have ever been in.  I was like wow crazy stuff.   ok.......... so as we were sitting there she made us this awesome delicious legit orange juice that was probably the best orange juice that I had ever had.  We sat down, my comp and her started talking about her life and how its been a rollercoaster because she used to be way rebellous in her teenage years and then she got married and had a baby and her husband ran off and she wanted to kill him but realized that she had so much to be grateful for.  She decided to change her life and become more spiritual.  We pulled out the Book of Mormon and started talking about how things today we don't have any scriptures for and that the bible can't help us today with things like the internet or how to raise our kids because its so old.  We told her that the Lord had called a prophet today and that he can give us the answers that we seek for our own day to raise our families the right way and to have the spirit of the Lord with us.  She was totally open to it.  She was very sincere about all the things that she said and stuff.  We gave her 3 Nephi 11 and Moroni's promise to read and she said she would and we would follow up the next Wednesday.  Wow.............. we thought about it and saw that it was the work of the Lord in our lives.  If it hadn't of rained that exact time that woman would have never opened up her gate to let us in, let alone; we would have never even tried to get in.  It is awesome to see how the Lord is preparing people to hear the gospel.  I hope we can teach her more, that would be awesome.  

So pretty much I'm pumped.  I could get my first baptism this weekend...... whooooooooooo 2 weeks in and gettin my first.  Thats pretty awesome.  I just want to be able to tell Jake that when I get back, because I will have him beat.  He got his in three...... :D  But mostly the biggest problem people have here is keeping the committments.  They are sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo kickback.... they don't feel in a rush to do anything because it will always be here tomorrow.  But its ok because I like a good challenge like that.  

The thing that has most changed my life here was while I was sitting in sacrament meeting.  These people travel through the rain by foot to get here.  They live in wooden huts that barely have electricity and running water, water that won't be very clean.  They rarely have beds.  They usually sleep with their whole family clumped together so that they don't freeze at nights.  They work to maybe even earn 2,000 dollars a year.  They give everything for their family and for others.  Hardly do they ever think of how they can make their lives better because they are content with what they have.  It got me thinking.  How great is it that I have a house.  My own room. A vehicle. An education beyond highschool (partially).  More than 3 shirts,  4 sets of shoes,  a blanket.  And numbers of countless blessings that I have to enjoy.  These people are truly humble of heart.  They see that if they turn their heart to the Lord they can feel at peace.  Yes they sometimes go weeks without full stomaches without decent water but yet they push on because they have everything to live for.  There families, and their God.  Even though I don't understand all that these people are saying I feel a love for them as my brothers and sisters in the gospel because thats what they are.  They are the same as me, a child of God.  I have not been sufficiently humbled to be saved because I needed to come here and see how much more of my time and substance that I can give to the Lord just as these people do.  

I hope you all can feel that love of the Lord in your lives this week as you turn your thoughts to your families and your blessings.  For are we not all blessed to be members of this glorious gospel.  I love you all and hope that the spirit of the Lord can be with you during all things and at all places.  \

Amo a mi familia, para siempre.  Dios nos ama y Jesucristo nos ama.

-Elder Beatty