They're Taking the Hobbits to Isengard!

Dear Family,

Today we climbed the volcano again. Mount Doom was conquered once again! Also, the computer I´m using right now is amazing. So that´s why I´m attaching so many pictures. Most of them are from the volcano, but I did attach some other pictures of me and my current companion in addition to one of me and Elder Silva who was my companion last transfer.

Today was very difficult. I did remember to lather on sunscreen so only the backs of my hands got burnt. Hm.... We had 2 sisters climb with us but they did well. They didn´t climb as fast as most of the Elders, but the pace they set was actually very nice. I would know because I led the rear, being the responsible Zone Leader and all.

This time it was all sunny and bright. However, despite what you´d think it wasn´t hot. In fact with the wind it was a little chilly. It was a good thing it didn´t rain. Also, this time we entered into the mouth of the volcano. Climbing out of the mouth was very hard. Climbing the outside we had paths and secure rocks to help us. Climbing out of the mouth we were climbing hand and foot up a downward slope made up of very small rocks. So for every step we took we got up 1/4 a step. This after having just climbing a volcano. My thighs were killing me.

This time we descended the other side of the volcano. I got plenty of pictures and video of running down. It appears I also got plenty of tiny little rocks in the mechanism of my camera. It still works so far, but when it opens and closes it makes a grinding type noise. I wince every time. My joker face is awesome. The picture of 4 in 1 is actually taken from a video clip of me running down the volcano. I turned the camera towards me and apparently made some funny faces. Go figure.

The rest of the past week was also challenging. We walked a lot and knocked on a lot of doors. We still managed to teach a good bit, but not nearly what we normally do. On wednesday we go to Brava. So I hope you´re ready for more pictures from there. I plan on using this place again.

Mom, you wanted to know what I want in my next package. Send Ice pops. Or Otter-pops as they are known in Utah. The popsicles that come in the long skinny sleeve thing. If you can. That would be pro. Thanks.

Love to all of you awesome people. Please be more awesome by writing.

Elder Peterson

Abs of Steel

Dear Family,

My new companion has introduced me to the P90x ab destroyer workout. It hurts.

I enjoyed hearing about everyones halloween and lives for the past week. I want to see pictures of Emily´s cake because it sounds amazing. Christian and Josh, I want you both to approach Mom in school in sight of your friends and give her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. It´s the least you could do. After all, she did bring you into this life.

Happy Birthday Mom!

Elder Brown and I have been pushing the envelope. It´s hard but I can already see the results. We´ve set goals for personal and companionship growth as well as helping the branch here improve. Right now the branch is doing well, but we want to help them help us. So the goal is to teach them how to teach, how to integrate investigators, less active members and recent converts. Then they can give us references and stuff. Which will help because currently our pool of investigators is disappearing.

It´s always sad when an investigator drops you. During the course of our work we find and teach people. If they don´t do anything, we will drop them. But it´s frustrating when an investigator is progressing or responding positively and then for one reason or another, they don´t want to talk to us anymore. We found out the other day that one of our investigators doesn´t even believe in God. Then the next visit he told us he didn´t want to talk to us anymore. The worst part about it is that he seems so unhappy with life and I know that if he were to accept the Gospel he could find so much happiness.

We´re still working hard. The other Elders in our apartment put a dead fish in our room because of an incident with some of those plant things that stick to your pants when you walk through them. It smelled really bad. They had planned to do more, but we nipped that idea in the bud. Pranks are truly not appropriate in the mission field.

Well, keep writing.

Elder Peterson

Living Out of a Carry On

Dear Family,

In case you didn´t get it from the title of this email, I traveled quite a bit this week. It was cool but we didn´t get much opportunity to work in our own area. We were supposed to go to the Volcano on Monday, but our flight that was supposed to be on Tuesday got moved to Monday. So that ruined that Zone Activity. And we spent our P-day in Praia. Did I mention that that day was also All Saints Day, which happens to be a national holiday here? That meant that all of the grocery stores were closed. That was a pain trying to find food. So we ended up staying in the Zone Leaders apartment which is directly adjacent to another apartment of Elders one of which is Elder Brown, my MTC companion. So that was fun.

Tuesday we did a little division, Elder Silva went with the Zone Leaders and I went with Elder Brown and his companion to teach in the morning. In the afternoon we had our Zone Leaders´ Council. We went back to Fogo on Wednesday morning and went straight to Mosteiros for a Baptism Interview. Because there isn´t a hiace back to São Filipe in the afternoon we stayed there the night on another mini-division. Thursday was a normal workday but friday we walked a lot and worked little. On Saturday we went to Patim in the morning for another baptism interview, but we got a car out there late. Then one of their investigators didn´t show up so we lost time waiting for him. That afternoon we waited for him to show up in São Filipe but he was late so we lost more time with that. Needless to say we didn´t get much work done on Saturday.

But, on Saturday we did learn about transfers. And guess what, I´m serving with Elder Brown again. Woot! He came here to Fogo today and we´ll be serving together again about the same time of year that we entered into the MTC. And if we stay together one more we will have passed through the MTC together and then served during that same time of year the next year in the field. Needless to say, I´m super pumped for this transfer.

Love ya,

Elder Peterson

Happy Halloween!

Dear Family,

I´m not sure if you knew it but yesterday was Halloween. If I wasn´t American I wouldn´t have had any idea. They don´t celebrate Halloween here. It was sad. Although Elder Silva and I did trade our nametags. It wasn´t the most creative costume, but when you are in this line of work you really don´t have that many options. But it was interesting how many people noticed and how many didn´t. Heh.

Also, Happy Birthday America! One year older and wiser too. Or at least that´s what they say.

Today I was supposed to climb the volcano again. But we learned on Saturday that we have our Zone Leaders´ Council tomorrow. Talk about short notice. I don´t know if we would have even found out except Elder Silva and I were doing our weekly planning and remembered that the past 2 months the Council had been in the first week of the month. So we called the assistants to verify and they were like, "oh yea, the Zone Leaders´ Council is on Tuesday and you guys are flying on Monday." So that shot our Zone Activity to bits. Which stinks because next week is transfers. But we´re going to try and get something worked out. Maybe have 2 zone activities next transfer. Hmm....

On Friday I was sick. Being sick on the mission is not a fun experience. I guess I should say I have been sick since Friday, but I was only down on Friday. We managed to get a member to stay home with me and another to walk with Elder Silva so we didn´t lose that days work. But staying home isn´t fun. It was weird though because sitting/laying down I felt pretty good. It was only when I got up and started doing things that it really hit me. So I´d feel bad just laying in bed because I´d feel fine and then I´d get up and start cleaning or something and I´d have to lay down again. Headache, stomache pains, sore throat to the max, it was unpleasant. And since then I have had a bad cough and sore throat. But I don´t know where to find cough syrup or cough drops. I guess I could try a pharmacy... it´s not like they have gas stations here.

Oh yea, and I´m actually in Praia right now. We flew in this morning. I´ve flown more on my mission than my entire life before. Go figure. But I will be spending my P-day in Praia which is pretty chill I guess. Although we didn´t have a chance to clean our apartment before we left. I hope the other Elders do a good job. Also I heard that the house we are staying in the next few days hasn´t had water all transfer. Not a good sign. But I will be staying with Elder Brown, one of my MTC comps so that´s cool.

On Wednesday I went on a division to Patim. It was a pretty good division. The members in that area are really nice though. They always send the missionaries away with food, be it corn on the cob or little watermelons or whatever. Speaking of, that was the first watermelon I´d had since I got here. It was super small and still green, but it was still good.

Well, that´s all folks.

Elder Peterson.