Elder Phillip Larsen: Feb 3, 2011 - Hobbs New Mexico Week 5

Well since Ricky (Phillip's cousin serving in a mission in Brazil) said he doesn't have time to read books, I'll write a short summary that people can read, then I'll write a longer section as well.

So this week has been pretty... uneventful, yet very eventful. We set a baptismal date with a lady named Sara Powell, she also had us start teaching her son which was really cool. It is so exciting to have people you are teaching, and people with a baptismal date. Unfortunately we'll have to reschedule her baptismal date because this past Monday we started getting... SNOW! So we have been parked Tuesday, Wednesday, and today (Thursday) is P-Day. We haven't been able to teach her all the lessons and she was going to be baptized on Saturday. The weather has been pretty crazy though. Last night was -5 and the night before -2. During the day with the windchill it was -15 outside so we have been staying at Milla, our land lady's house. She has been enjoying the company. I didn't think I'd be seeing snow in Hobbs New Mexico. It has been really awesome to see snow though.

-Elder Phillip Larsen

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Okay, so here is the long version. :P

This last Monday before the storm started, I went on splits with the Spanish elders. We biked a total of 18 miles, I was a little tired because I realized that we go a lot less miles in our area than they do in theirs, we also went to the middle of nowhere, which had a few streets with a house on each one. Haha. The countryside is kind of weird!

We met someone to teach though out there and had a first lesson with her. She spoke only spanish though, and me with my small vocabulary of Portuguese could understand the conversation but I couldn't contribute at all. It's a little intimidating to see little children speak a language that sounds like the language I am trying to speak. The person we were teaching had a little daughter who would say stuff in Spanish to us. Being with the Spanish Elders reminded me of my first area with Elder White and Elder Simmons. Funny thing too, Elder White is now my Zone Leader because I'm in the Roswell Zone.

So like the short summary has been, we have a lot of snow... Well not a lot of snow for New England, but we're getting a lot of snow for New Mexico. I wonder if the Wilsons (in Albuquerque) have been getting this too... Perhaps. We have got about 6 inches maybe? We don't have a reliable way to find out the weather. We use this number called Tellme and it says the "Weather" for the area or whatever city we want. When we would check the past few days it would say "Clear, and it's 54 degrees with no wind." we would then go outside and know what the weather really was. We're supposed to get another storm next week too.

We've been going to Milla's house the past few days and we listened to some German folk music. The wind and the temperature are what is dangerous for us since I'm in a biking area and the Spanish Elders have a car. It was cold even to be standing outside, let alone going 10-15 mph on a bike. Not a smart idea!

So overall it hasn't been too eventful. Just staying warm. Don't worry Mom, we're warm enough at night despite the dangerous temperatures. I got 2 fleece blankets since entering the TLM and have been using those, and a comforter as well, with a scarf wrapped around my feet, a sweat shirt, long sleeved shirt as well so we're good.

Sorry. This one is a shorter email too. Nothing really to write about. I got pictures though! So I hope you enjoy those.

Love you very much, hope you're staying warm, I'm trying. Miss you, love hearing from you. You're in my prayers.

-Elder Phillip Larsen

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Picture Information:

001, Hobbs New Mexico Sign. They have one at each of the four entrances to the city.

002, In the Jehovah's Witnesses New World Translation of the Bible, they talk about slimy juices of marshmallow! Hmmm, I didn't know that is what the scripture meant! :P