Elder Jakob Lutze: Semana 9 (Marcos ~ My First Baptism)

What a week! There's always so much to talk about, and I don't know what to choose. My emails already are forever long. So apologies. Anyways, let's get started!

First off, PDAY!!! Pday is hype. I get to talk to the fam, friends, do laundry, shop, eat at Wendy's apparently, and of course... Fútbol! Ah man, I love soccer so much. And we get a lot of attention from kids when I start juggling a ball in the street. But, Pdays are super dope, and a good destresser.

Things I forgot to mention in my last email ~ Chinos. People here call stores Chinos because the stores are run by Chinese people. They also call the people Chinos and not by their name. Suuuuuuper racist. But Chinos are dope and have everything you need. Another thing ~ Chivas. Oh Chivas. To get to Los Andes or other places not in our area we take Chivas (buses.) They literally just fit as many people in as humanly possible and play horrible music. It's actually so lit. Not as lit as Diablos Rojos (Red Devils.) Those are school buses from America that were imported here and they paint them and supe them up. They are kinda sketch but so dope!

The women on the Chivas and in general can be scary. On the Chivas some women stare at me, wink, make hearts, touch my butt, press against me, or stroke my face with their acrylic nails ..... super weird! And they love saying things (in Spanish of course) like "I love you baby" "Black girls taste sweet" "Hola mi amor" "Eres galan" (Handsome dude/sexy) "Give me your eyes" (babies)... yea stuff like that. Honestly, if I wasn't scared of being kidnapped by them, I would probably be flattered. Broma Broma, I'm not scared.... "ok a little, but!" *in Gru's voice*

Food is energy. Rice and chuleta is about all I eat ~ not much flavor. But, I'm super grateful for it! And sometimes it is dang good. Hermana Bab gave us an absolute mountain of rice and we had to eat it all. I was beyond full. And Hermana Laura gave us this strange food... it was basically blended up fish with who knows what. She was excited about it though. So, we managed to eat it all with a smile. It was brutal. But I'm still super thankful to her. Later that day while we were in the streets we kept smelling her food in really nasty areas... soooo, we became a little concerned! What was in that?

This week we also had a service project with some of the zone. We helped set up a camp for all of Panama's YSA. So that was pretty cool. And after that we started intercambios. We switched comps for the night and morning. So I was with Elder Ramirez. Oh how I'll never forget this. He got lost going back to his area (Cerro Batea).... for 2 hours. We finally made it back to his apartment and dropped my stuff off and went out to teach. We had 1 lesson and he got lost again... for 5 hours!!! We walked a huge circle ~ about 2 miles. He tried walking us down one particular street twice, after we had been warned not to go that way late at night (8). So I stopped him. Good thing too, because we heard some uhh "fireworks." Anyways. In the morning, we went out to teach but he got lost AGAIN. Then it started pouring, like water past my ankles pouring and Elder Ramirez didn't bring his umbrella. So I ended up giving him mine. I was absolutely drenched. But, it was so fun and everyone thought I was so weird. Which I am. (Hahaha) But I'm also a gringo, so obviously they think I'm weird.

The next day it poured again and my other shoes got drenched. But, I love the rain, so I don't even care. Literally it is my favorite thing.

Other things that happened ~ talking to some boys. It was hilarious. They offered us weed, which happens a lot, and they kept asking if we were virgins. Happy to say we are. I learned a ton of slang! And for my favorite Dutch friend, they kept saying "Quiero torta". Our stove also exploded this week. It started shooting sparks at me while I was washing dishes. We got a new one. We also saw a dead dude. Our friend Eliseo, his friend, got shot and now Eliseo is asking us for money. So I'm not really sure what we are involved in!

I also met the funniest dude of my life ~ Edson. I learned that you practice kissing on sandias (watermelons) and mangos, NOT PINEAPPLES and go to church so your girlfriend doesn't kill you. Then Edson lost it when I told him I'm from Lehi. And that there is a Nephi and Moroni in Utah. "Like the profeta!?! Is there a Lemuel too?! I feel bad for the people who would live there!" So, so funny. He was dying!

And then of course... MARCOS. My first baptism. The man is 80 years old! What a legend! He didn't want a pic... but that's ok. Super special! I love that guy. I'm excited for the many more baptisms coming. We be working hard.

There's too many spiritual thoughts to choose from. I'll go with the scriptures today. Everyday, I have time for personal prayer and scripture study. It is the best start to a day I could ask for. I've learned a lot. But, the best thing I've learned is that the scriptures fill you with the Holy Ghost. Every time I immerse myself in the scriptures, I just feel happy for the rest of the day. We learn that the scriptures are the word of God ~ the iron rod and it leads to the fruit of the tree which is God's love. I truly can testify that scriptures are the word of God and that when we immerse ourselves in them, we are filled with the Holy Ghost and love. So, I challenge all of you to immerse yourself. Read with a purpose. And, I promise you that you will feel the love of God in your life!

I love you all. And God even more. I'm so thankful for your support and prayers. I hope you are all doing well. I love the mission and I'm excited each day to learn, teach, and grow. Have a great week!

Elder Lutsay