La Expiacion

Hey Guys!!

This week was good.  There were some pretty hot days.  It's weird cause there's not a ton of sun and it's usually just always cloudy, but all of the heat comes from below us, so that really sucks for like our feet and stuff.

This weekend we had an activity of talents, it was so cool!!  People really just got up to sing and stuff.  I didn't understand much but that's alright haha.  Our zone did a skit too, so that was really fun!  It was fun to prepare for that.

I was nervous all week cause we had transfers today.  So last night we got the call if you did or not.  I was nervous that I would get tranfered again.  But luckily my zone leader called the President and said that he thinks that my comp and I should stay cause we only had two weeks here.  So yeah, my comp and I are still companions in Puerto Liza so that's cool.  We still have the same zone leaders so that's also cool.  I love them haha we live in the same house with them.

So my comp and I have 4 new investigators! there's an older guy and his son and his son's wife and their daughter.  We were origionally only teaching the older guy.  If I remember right, his name is Alcedes Peso, but one day his son walked in drunk and sat in and listened and argued a ton and it was so weird haha.  But then the next time his wife sat in and listened and we taught about the story in the Book of Mormon where Alma the Younger had the angel come to him and the sons of Mosiah.  It was cool.  She's a real hard core Catholic I think, but she seemed kinda interested.  We invited them to come to church, and yesterday they all came to church, it was so cool!!!!  They came for all three hours. So yeah I hope that they continue to want to take the lessons.  They seem like good people, but they aren't married so that's a problem danget.

Anyway, I love you guys so much, and hope you all have a fantastic week!!  Always be praying in your hearts. La Expiacion de Jesucristo es muy importante en nuestros vidas and por medie de El podemos ser limpios de nuestros pecados.

Love you guys, bye!!

Elder Pollock

Earthquakes and Ingrown toenails!

Hey guys! 

This week was super crazy! There were two more earthquakes in Guayaquil and tambien I had ingrown townails. Bad.  But all is well now.  My comp and I had to figure tons of things out this week. The members, the people in general, and the area we are working in, and woah it was confusing haha.  It was all good.  We work in the same sector as our zone leaders so we went on splits with them almost every day.  Not all day long but pretty much most of the day for working. It was really good though, I learned a lot and the people and members here are super cool!  

So there were two more earthquakes!  One happened while we were planning for the day.  Halfway through, the house started shaking and it lasted like 10 plus seconds and it wasn't weak but also wasn't super strong.  It was so cool.  And the other was in the night at like 11 and it lasted longer and was stronger, but I only heard about it because I was sleeping.  Most of the missionarys slept through it and some woke up to it but just went back to bed cause sleep's more important.  But I loved it.  Hopefully there aren't more cause if they're bad, some buildings will fall and ours might too, but oh well, I guess not much we can do. 

So on Saturday, my ingrown toenails were hurting a lot so we had a member in our ward who is a local dentist look at them.  She said that they needed to be cut and stuff. So yeah, Saturday night at like 11 she came to our house and gave me anesthetics and shots in my toes which hurt so bad. Probably the most pain I've been in haha.  Anyway, it was good, we got some videos and pics and stuff it was cool.  Today the mission nurses made an appointment at the foot doctor and me and one of the zone leaders went and the doctor dude said that she cut them bad and I had more still in my toe.  Anyway, the days before I had them cut my toes would be bleeding and stuff and puss and yeah it was gross.  But yeah, he started cutting away with no numbing stuff and it was way more painful then Saturday night.  My hands hurt too from squeezing the chair today.  But yeah, they should be all good now.  I can't walk on it today but tomorrow I should, he said.  Oh yeah and yesterday I couldn't go to church cause it hurt to walk. 

The people here are so cool and I think they are more responsive then in Jaramijo.  They actually have the whole families in the house.  In Jaramijo Todos De Los Esposos are fisherman so the men were never home.  But yeah I like it here more, but it's always crazy and so many things going on. We also had an activity where we brought and invited people to the church from the street and we taught them about the Book of Mormon and stuff in the church.  It was so cool I loved it so much!! 

Anyways, love you guys so much and I hope you all have fantastic weeks!!  Remember to always be quick to remember the Lords hand in your lives every day.  Bye! 

The pics are of a Coke bottle of a Santa I thought was funny, my scriptures cases that i got, and of my toe.  Sorry I don't have more. 

cambios de emergencia

Hey guys!! This past week was so crazy! Only at the end though. The week was kinda slow but we were working hard. The baptism for this last Sunday got pushed for the next Sunday so it stinks I wont be there for it. 

 A couple days ago we woke up to an earthquake. I forgot how to spell it. It took me a minute to remember it in English.  But anyway, it was insane and crazy.  At around 1:30- 2 in the morning we woke up and our beds were shaking and the windows were rattling so it was super loud!  It only lasted about 6 seconds.  I was already kinda awake when it started.  Elder White popped up and yelled vamos!  So we all got up and grab our emergency backpacks and left the house.  We live on the second story so it could have gone bad.  Oh yeah, and Elder White's comp who is new to the mission, Elder Porter, woke up a little late and saw that we were all running around to grab stuff so he just followed the leader and didn't really know what was going on but it was all good.  We left the house and about 20 min later we just went back inside and went back to bed.  I loved it.  I wish it would have happened in the daytime so I could have seen it. 

So on Saturday, after the weekly planning, when we are all together as a zone the zone leaders said we have an announcement, Elder Pollock and Elder Astete are leaving.  So yeah, me and my comp had emergency combio.  I don't know the word in English.  I think it's change.  We left that afternoon and now are in Guayaquil.  It's really weird.  We are still compañeros, but in a different zone.  We are now in Puerto Liza.  It's pretty rough changing like that.  Elder White and I got really close.  Now we are here trying to figure out what to do and how to get to know everyone as fast as possible, so yeah its pretty stressful.  The other two missionaries are from Peru and Quito.  They are super cool and zone leaders.  We are living with them now. 

Anyways, I can't really remember anything big that happened more. I miss the investigators from my old area.  They were super cool and I hope they progress.  It was hard there.  No one really wanted to do anything, but I still loved them a ton.  Anyways, love you guys so much! Remember to always be praying in your hearts throughout your days. You will feel better if you do.  And also read the Book of Mormon every day!  I'll do it with you!  It's a pretty cool book. It's the word of the God.  Alright, bye!!

Elder Pollock

A Goat

Hey guys!!

This week was pretty good!  There is getting to be a lot more sun so I got a cheep little hat which is dope so I'm going to start wearing that more.  Oh and also we are going to have a baptism this Sunday.  I'm pumped and hope everything turns out all good, cause I don't want it to fall through. It's going to be at like 7 in the morning before church so that means I get to wake up earlier..... yeah!!

So yesterday at church right before the last hour these Americans walked up and they are just like scoping out the area for their charity thing. They were pretty cool and it was super fun to talk to them they said that if we have anything to send home that they would would take it home for us for free!!  So we are going to meet up with them later to give them our stuff.  It's pretty cool.  Also today we went to this mall in Manta which is called Mall Pacifico and it is so pretty!! It felt like I was back in the states.  Well a Spanish USA.  Almost all the stores had English songs playing and it was sweet! It brought me back to the good old days.

I can't really remember what else happened this week cause all the days really blend together.  The Spanish is getting better which is really good. I think I can talk better then I can understand which is a little weird.  It's hard in lessons when I can't really understand fully what the people are saying.  I can get a good general idea but I'm confused a lot.  I'm glad my comp is Latino.  It's nice having him around.  Nothing much is going on just lots of work and walking and knocking on doors.  I love it and it's so hard.  It's crazy how fast time goes by though.

Alright, I love you guys so much. I hope you all have an amazing week!!  And remember the scripture in the Book of Mormon in Heleman ch.5 verse 12.  It's good and a good reminder of what we need to do.  Aright, well love you all. Sorry, but I don't really have any pictures for you guys. I think all I got is a pic of a goat that I took out of the window of a taxi.  It's my favorite goat.

Love,

Elder Jackson

*Note from Mom - The Americans that he was talking about sent me a text saying that she was with my awesome missionary and took a picture thinking of me.  So, with his lack of photos this week, I was happy to get her photo.  😊  

PS - His shoes are so dusty!  A hard working missionary!