Como Estan?
Que hay! How is everything? I hope your knee is ok mom, you will be in my prayers. Well I thought transfers was this week, but it is next week, sorry. So write me before next tuesday. But yea, I would be surprised if I dont get tranfered.
It sounds like your lives are all great. wow you all are lucky to have listened to Brook White again.
That is funny that Mr. Davis is going to be a principal, he is the coolest! I hope those kids are ready.
Yea that would be pretty funny to see the faces of Brother Grovers class if I spoke Puerto Rican Spanish to them. It is definitely something different.
To work with the members we do what are called lightning visits. We go to their house, offer ourselves for service, and leave with a prayer. It is a good way to get less actives more active, because they feel the spirit while we are there, and they feel it leave. So it helps them to go to church and feel that spirit.
Wow, I dont think a ward is allowed to have two Hardy families. They wont know what to do. That is cool you guys get to go to the campout togoether.
Well last week we went to El Morro again, that is the army fort in pirates of the Carribean. It was SWEET! Because this time we forked out 3 bucks and went inside the castle. It was super fun, we had a bunch or missionaries. You will see some of our adventure in a week when I send my card.
One cool thing that I found out is that Oscar De la Joya lives in our area. Yea Guaynabo is rich. Also I found out that Tim Duncan is from one of the Islands in our mission, St Croix (I think thats how you spell it)
We went to the Pueblo in Rio Piedras, and I finally bought some shoes. My other ones were getting pretty bad. Everytime it rains, the whole in the bottom of my shoe just sucks the water right up. I cant believe I wore a hole in the shoes in just 4 months. Do you think we walk alot? but the new shoes are decent. Every store we went to had the same shoes, and they are all not very good. All of them are made out of fake crocodile or snake skin, and the toes are stretched out a good 2 to 4 inches than a normal shoe. but I managed to find some semi normal shoes. We will see how long they last me, the were only 25 dollars.
One funny thing about Puerto Rico is that they dont have very big yards, so there is a lot of crazy things on their roofs. For example one of our investigators has a pool ontop of her roof. And we arent talking about those little blow up baby pools. It is a BIG POOL. you will see, I took a picture. Also the other day I saw a swing set on top of someone's house! HAHA! That is just not safe, I dont know what they were thinkning.
Well good news on Rosa, she is getting baptized this SUNDAY!!! It was a really cool story. She was a jehovahs witness before, so she was struggling with the fact that we dont talk or pray to jehovah. We showed her a bunch of scriptures that Christ was the God of the Old testament, but she could just not change. She prayed, and just still couldt not believe it. Then we went over again, showed her more scriptures, still nothing, and as we were looking for more scriptures at her house, she just opened the Book of Mormon and started reading aloud. Well I dont think it was by chance that she started Reading Mormon Chapter 9, it is one of my favorite chapters, and it is super powerful. Well about half way through she just started bawling, and said a prayer out loud, thanking God for her answer. Then she told us that she has never felt the spirit so strong, and that she knows the Book of Mormon is true, and that Christ was Jehovah.
Then I told her that if she wanted to feel this spirit with her all the time, every second of every day, she needs to be baptized with the authority of God. She immediately said, "When can I be baptized." So the baptism will be Sunday. She is really excited, and she has a strong testimony.
It just shows you the power of the Book of Mormon and Holy Ghost. We didnt do anything, it was the Holy Ghost.
Well I love you all very much, keep being good examples to all those around you, and keep striving to be more Christ like.
Love Elder Hardy
Friday, April 24, 2009
April 15, 2009
Hey! Hey!
Thank you so much for the package, all the candy was great, and I love the Mindy Gledhill Cd. Elder Polanco was pretty excited about that chocolate bunny you sent him.
Easter is definitely different here. They celebrate the entire week. They call it the Holy week. All the kids dont have school, and nobody works on Friday (The death of Christ). It is pretty crazy, EVERYONE goes to church on Friday and Sunday (resurrection Sunday). We also ate alot of habituales con duelces. It is very different. It is a tradition mostly in the Dominican Republic, But they soak beans in water for like 24 hours, then they put it in a blender with sugar, milk, and other stuff. It was pretty good, nobody thought I would like it, they kept saying "You can try a little bit to see if you like it." I only got one thing to say, If you think beans will give you gas and diahrea, try eating liquid beans.
Super P day was really fun. We got there early and set up, so we started playing around 10 and didnt stop until 4. It was a really nice gated neighborhood that president rented. It was really cool, it was surrounded by mountain jungles. I mostly played Tennis and Basketball, but also played a little Rubgy and Volleyball. It was funny seeing Sister Dewsnup play basketball and volleyball, and President be quarterback in football. haha, I got super sunburnt. you will see the pictures, my tanline is super funny.
President Dewsnup is amazing! He was a general and a lawyer. He knows everything about the sciptures. That man knows so much it it amazing. I love listening to him speak. He also really loves his wife, every single zone conference he tells us how lucky he is to have Sister Dewsnup.
The name of my bishop is Bishop Walker. That is awesome that Jordan is going to Brazil. We just had this guy move in with his family from Brazil. I can not understand their language to save my life, but luckily they speak English too. It was super funny when he bore his testimony and everyone was giggling and trying to understand him.
Somtheing funny is that whenever we walk passed kids they yell Obama at Elder Polanco. I dont know why, he doesnt look anything like Obama, but they do. And he just gives them a little "Yea, what up".
In Puerto Rico people dont point at people with their fingers, they point at them with their lips. It is pretty funny, and very interesting the first time you see it, it is like they are trying to kiss you.
Oh! Speaking of, everyone greats everyone with a kiss on the cheek here, and we really have to watch out, because the people always try to kiss us. I like to use the stiff arm block and jump top the side. Elder Polance got kissed by this lady one time, it was pretty funny. Its not bad, it is just their culture, so no worries.
well yesterday we finally played a little "Prosball". Both of our appointments fell through and it was like 8 O'clock, so we went and played some guys in basketball, and since we beat them, we have a return appointment to go teach them.
Today we are going to Old San Juan Again. Were going to Morro again (Old Army Fort). But everyone is going, because I guess Johnny Depp is there filming another movie, so we are going to find him and teach him. We'll see how it goes.
The heat is starting to come. I dont want to imagine how summer is. Yeah my face was breaking out, but is is calming down, the humidity is pretty bad. But if I need to I will get some medicine.
Well we are planning the baptism for Alvaro next week, so that is good. It is a long story with Rosa, but she is still coming to church, and wants to be baptized.
Alright I love you all, read your scriptures, and rely on the lord.
Love Elder Hardy
Thank you so much for the package, all the candy was great, and I love the Mindy Gledhill Cd. Elder Polanco was pretty excited about that chocolate bunny you sent him.
Easter is definitely different here. They celebrate the entire week. They call it the Holy week. All the kids dont have school, and nobody works on Friday (The death of Christ). It is pretty crazy, EVERYONE goes to church on Friday and Sunday (resurrection Sunday). We also ate alot of habituales con duelces. It is very different. It is a tradition mostly in the Dominican Republic, But they soak beans in water for like 24 hours, then they put it in a blender with sugar, milk, and other stuff. It was pretty good, nobody thought I would like it, they kept saying "You can try a little bit to see if you like it." I only got one thing to say, If you think beans will give you gas and diahrea, try eating liquid beans.
Super P day was really fun. We got there early and set up, so we started playing around 10 and didnt stop until 4. It was a really nice gated neighborhood that president rented. It was really cool, it was surrounded by mountain jungles. I mostly played Tennis and Basketball, but also played a little Rubgy and Volleyball. It was funny seeing Sister Dewsnup play basketball and volleyball, and President be quarterback in football. haha, I got super sunburnt. you will see the pictures, my tanline is super funny.
President Dewsnup is amazing! He was a general and a lawyer. He knows everything about the sciptures. That man knows so much it it amazing. I love listening to him speak. He also really loves his wife, every single zone conference he tells us how lucky he is to have Sister Dewsnup.
The name of my bishop is Bishop Walker. That is awesome that Jordan is going to Brazil. We just had this guy move in with his family from Brazil. I can not understand their language to save my life, but luckily they speak English too. It was super funny when he bore his testimony and everyone was giggling and trying to understand him.
Somtheing funny is that whenever we walk passed kids they yell Obama at Elder Polanco. I dont know why, he doesnt look anything like Obama, but they do. And he just gives them a little "Yea, what up".
In Puerto Rico people dont point at people with their fingers, they point at them with their lips. It is pretty funny, and very interesting the first time you see it, it is like they are trying to kiss you.
Oh! Speaking of, everyone greats everyone with a kiss on the cheek here, and we really have to watch out, because the people always try to kiss us. I like to use the stiff arm block and jump top the side. Elder Polance got kissed by this lady one time, it was pretty funny. Its not bad, it is just their culture, so no worries.
well yesterday we finally played a little "Prosball". Both of our appointments fell through and it was like 8 O'clock, so we went and played some guys in basketball, and since we beat them, we have a return appointment to go teach them.
Today we are going to Old San Juan Again. Were going to Morro again (Old Army Fort). But everyone is going, because I guess Johnny Depp is there filming another movie, so we are going to find him and teach him. We'll see how it goes.
The heat is starting to come. I dont want to imagine how summer is. Yeah my face was breaking out, but is is calming down, the humidity is pretty bad. But if I need to I will get some medicine.
Well we are planning the baptism for Alvaro next week, so that is good. It is a long story with Rosa, but she is still coming to church, and wants to be baptized.
Alright I love you all, read your scriptures, and rely on the lord.
Love Elder Hardy
April 8, 2009
Buenos Dias! Como esta mi familia? Todo bien aqui. No hay problemas. This week was really good. I had a little mini trade-off with one of my good buddies from the CCM, Elder Donovan, because our companions are district leaders, and they had a meeting. But it was super fun. We were good buddies in the CCM, and we are in the same zone, so I see him a lot. But we took the train to Santurce, his area and tracted for a couple of hours, and met and taught this really lost guy and set a date with him. But Santurce is super cool. It is a huge city. There is a million people in Santurce. It is super close to old San Juan. I drove through it the other day and took a video. It is just a bunch of high rises.
Puerto Rico facts: 90% of men under the age of 27 drive a motorized scooter. Ha! ha! There are so many of those dang scooters, and all of them have super bad exhaust on them so they are all super annoying.
Someone told me the other day that there is volcanic ash rain here 4 to 5 times a year. The ash is from a nearby volcano and gets carried over here, and comes down in the rain. They said its uperhard to get off of your car. So I'm guessing my shirt isn't going to be very white when I get home--more like an ash grey.
Well, the baptism didn't go through because Alvaro had work. But he is going to find out his schedule at his new job, and he is going to set a day when he can do it. Last night he was talking to his wife and trying to convert her. It was super cool. But he is still excited to be baptized so that is good.
We saw Rosa again and she was still super sick. She might be in the hospital. Usually she has her door open because she sells candy and soda, but we have passed by a couple days, and her door is closed, and we knock, and she hasn't answered.
We finally started teaching someone who is young. His name is Raul. He is like 24, and goes to the university. He is pretty cool. His girl friend is a member, and he has gone to institute a lot. So he knows a lot of the Book of Mormon. We hve taught him twice, and he is pretty interested. We didn't commit him to baptism because he said there is stuff in his life that he needs to change first before he gets baptized. So we are going to work with him and help him receive this great blessing.
Conference was awesome! It just seems like they are calling us all out. I loved the quote "We need strong Christian men in the Church." This is not the time for pansies. We need to step it up, and be valiant Christian men and show the world what's up. I loved President Utchdorf's talk, and when he told the story of the guy who was building the wall. "I am doing an important work, and I can not come down." I don't have my notes with me right now, but on Saturday, including priesthood, htere was 18 talks, and 8 of those were on tough times are coming, and dealing with trials. To tell you the truth I was pretty scared. But faith and fear cannot exist together. Yes, tough times are coming, but we know it is coming so we just need to have faith in the Lord that everthing is going to be alright. And I know that as long we have our family, everything is going to be alright. I just didn't like the quote, "Play time is over." You all know how much I like to play. But this is our wake-up call. We have had it too easy for too long. We need a trial of our faith (Mosiah 23:21-22). But I think one thing we need to do is save money. There are a lot of things we do that really we can take away and save money. Yall don't have to send me a bunch of packages just save the money. I don't need food. Send me your letters. I love getting letters during the week. They put a big grin on my face. Today I got a letter from Hailey, and I was so excited. But yea, the big thing I got from conference is that we are going to be tested. It is easy to keep the faith when everything is good in our lives. So we need to prepared.
Well, I should be getting to bed, tomorrow. It is Super P-Day! I am really excited. All of the missionaries on the Island are meeting at a big park and we are going to play a bunch of sports. It is also going to be the championship between me and Elder Chandler in tennis. He use to be in my zone, but got transferred before we could play the championship. He is a really good tennis player. He played in high school. So it will be really fun. And me and Elder Kelly have been dominating the doubles matches in our zone so we will see if anyone wants to step it up and give us a match.
Well, I love you all. You are always in my prayers. Keep the faith, and remember that you are nothing with out the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
Love, Elder Hardy
Puerto Rico facts: 90% of men under the age of 27 drive a motorized scooter. Ha! ha! There are so many of those dang scooters, and all of them have super bad exhaust on them so they are all super annoying.
Someone told me the other day that there is volcanic ash rain here 4 to 5 times a year. The ash is from a nearby volcano and gets carried over here, and comes down in the rain. They said its uperhard to get off of your car. So I'm guessing my shirt isn't going to be very white when I get home--more like an ash grey.
Well, the baptism didn't go through because Alvaro had work. But he is going to find out his schedule at his new job, and he is going to set a day when he can do it. Last night he was talking to his wife and trying to convert her. It was super cool. But he is still excited to be baptized so that is good.
We saw Rosa again and she was still super sick. She might be in the hospital. Usually she has her door open because she sells candy and soda, but we have passed by a couple days, and her door is closed, and we knock, and she hasn't answered.
We finally started teaching someone who is young. His name is Raul. He is like 24, and goes to the university. He is pretty cool. His girl friend is a member, and he has gone to institute a lot. So he knows a lot of the Book of Mormon. We hve taught him twice, and he is pretty interested. We didn't commit him to baptism because he said there is stuff in his life that he needs to change first before he gets baptized. So we are going to work with him and help him receive this great blessing.
Conference was awesome! It just seems like they are calling us all out. I loved the quote "We need strong Christian men in the Church." This is not the time for pansies. We need to step it up, and be valiant Christian men and show the world what's up. I loved President Utchdorf's talk, and when he told the story of the guy who was building the wall. "I am doing an important work, and I can not come down." I don't have my notes with me right now, but on Saturday, including priesthood, htere was 18 talks, and 8 of those were on tough times are coming, and dealing with trials. To tell you the truth I was pretty scared. But faith and fear cannot exist together. Yes, tough times are coming, but we know it is coming so we just need to have faith in the Lord that everthing is going to be alright. And I know that as long we have our family, everything is going to be alright. I just didn't like the quote, "Play time is over." You all know how much I like to play. But this is our wake-up call. We have had it too easy for too long. We need a trial of our faith (Mosiah 23:21-22). But I think one thing we need to do is save money. There are a lot of things we do that really we can take away and save money. Yall don't have to send me a bunch of packages just save the money. I don't need food. Send me your letters. I love getting letters during the week. They put a big grin on my face. Today I got a letter from Hailey, and I was so excited. But yea, the big thing I got from conference is that we are going to be tested. It is easy to keep the faith when everything is good in our lives. So we need to prepared.
Well, I should be getting to bed, tomorrow. It is Super P-Day! I am really excited. All of the missionaries on the Island are meeting at a big park and we are going to play a bunch of sports. It is also going to be the championship between me and Elder Chandler in tennis. He use to be in my zone, but got transferred before we could play the championship. He is a really good tennis player. He played in high school. So it will be really fun. And me and Elder Kelly have been dominating the doubles matches in our zone so we will see if anyone wants to step it up and give us a match.
Well, I love you all. You are always in my prayers. Keep the faith, and remember that you are nothing with out the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
Love, Elder Hardy
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