March 26 - April 9, 2012

March 26, 2012

Hey fam! On Friday we had a special mission night for the branch. We rented a turf field and played soccer under the lights on friday night and invited all the men in the ward and their friends. It was a lot of fun and a big success to get the branch more unified and get references - not to mention I had two goals and two assists. Gringo power! We also started teaching Carlos´ sister who is very interested. She is 15 and already attended church this Sunday. It’s like a Luis and Kiara all over again. There are also other youth that we have begun teaching that could very easily be baptized in the month of April sometime. It’s quite exciting to see what could be coming up. Edwyn got sent to ¨the Island¨ for work (an island between Piura and Chiclayo popular for fishing) and will get back on April 2. We put his baptismal date for the 7th. Hopefully he will come back ready to go and with the desire to get baptized.

At church on Sunday attendance went up to a whopping 70 people. It was exciting to see so many people actually come and it was a great testimony meeting. I really miss those BYU Idaho sacrament meetings though where you can hear a pin drop. Here it’s louder than Bandimere Speedway with all the little kids jumping around and the sound echoes off the concrete walls so pleasantly. Ha. I’m excited for conference weekend coming up. We’ll be traveling down to the stake center in Piura both days. It will be interesting watching it in Spanish.

April 2, 2012

On Saturday we had another baptism! Carlos` sister, Asusena, progressed quickly and was very willing, so we taught her the lessons and put her on date for Saturday. That means that I have been able to keep a very special tradition alive – I’ve always baptized at least two members in the same family. Tiffany and her Dad, Diego and Yeiko (brothers), Luis, Kiara and Eva (brother and sister and grandma), and now Carlos and Asusena. It is quite the blessing to see these family members experience the gospel together and be there to support one another. We also have great potential for this week. Edywn got back from his trip yesterday and we will be visiting him tomorrow to see if he is ready. There is a friend of Carlos and Asusena named Milton that has a baptismal date for Saturday. And then looking into all of April there are more. But it will all depend in our efforts and obedience (and the Lord).

In other news, Sechura went crazy last week. On Sunday night, the 25th, they announced that there would be a strike. The economy of Sechura depends entirely on fishing, for the most part. It is a town built close to the ocean for that very purpose. Recently, a big oil company has come in and set up to drill for natural gas. This, however, would kill most of the fish near Sechura, and thus, put many fisherman out of their jobs. So the fishermen are ticked off and decided they were going to protest. On Monday it was a peaceful protest where they all just formed next to the bridge and yelled as the buses went by to Piura. But on Tuesday, it got really violent. Their intention was to stop all activity in the city. I don’t really know what their intention was. But they set fires in the streets and threw bricks, trees, and whatever other type of material they could in the streets to try and block transports. They blocked the bridge that leads to Piura preventing the buses and hundreds of people from traveling to jobs or schools, attacked the police station and set it on fire, burned taxis and raided a gas station. In total there were 3 deaths . It was quite dangerous and we didn’t go out much that day. This also means we were unable to go to Piura for the zone meeting where I would have been able to get the package that Mom and dad sent.

Conference was good but I didn’t get to pay as much attention to it as would have liked. It is weird watching it in Spanish. The voices are so monotone and dry compared to the actual voices. We watched one session in english with the presidents computer from Saturday but that was all. From what I saw, it sounds like the theme was Faith and Family. We should all be happy living the gospel principles, and what a testament our family is to that. I’ll ust have to wait for next months Liahona.

April 9, 2012

Big news from here in Peru. Edwyn got back this week from his mini work trip and my prayers were answered. He returned with a desire to still get baptized. On Saturday, we went about 30 minutes north to the nearest chapel in ¨La Union¨ with about 5 other members and the branch president for the baptism. Edwyn bore a great testimony at his baptism of how he found a happiness in reading the book of Mormon and praying that told him all was true.

We recieved the changes today and... I’m leaving Sechura. It came as a big surprise since I’ve only had 6 weeks here and was really looking forward to staying here longer. It is a tough area, but the Lord is pouring out rich blessings here and I have been able to see the branch get strengthened a lot. I had big plans to work with the 6 young men that should be leaving for missions in the next year or two, and plans to work hard with a new companion, but God has another vision for me. President says that I have finished my time in Sechura and now have other things to learn. It is interesting to think whether or not I was able to complete my purpose here that God had for me. So tomorrow we’ll be going to Piura early in the morning with all my bags to figure out where I’m headed.

As far as everything else goes, things are going well. The strike only lasted a day, so things have been calmed down for a while. But one interesting thing is that on Friday night we heard a loud knock at the front door to the house we are living in. It was 2:45 in the morning and the branch president, his wife, and a counselor were outside. Apparently somebody called Elder Young’s Dad in Lima and said that they had taken Elder Young and that his companion had ran away (me). They asked for money to get him back, knowing that his Dad has a lot of money and also being a seventy might have had something to do with it. He contacted the police, and then Salt Lake City, who then called President Chipman, who then contacted the branch president who then came quickly to our room to check. Needless tosay, it was a lie and we were okay, but it was a scary thought to think someone had made that attempt.

March 6 - March 19

March 6

Tuesday morning all the people that received changes and their companions met in the stake center of Piura Central. My new area is Sechura, the southern most area of the mission. It is about 1 hour and 15 minutes in bus. The next area is about 35 minutes from us and then they are another 40 from Piura. Sechura is a pretty cool town. We’re 6 minutes from the ocean and so there are big wooden fishing boats in front of the majority of the houses that they have built themselves. The sun is stronger here and its a bit more dry. There are 4 missionaries here in total and our areas are gigantic. Sechura is also only a branch and has church in a casa capilla, aka a big building that has different rooms that we use as needed. Sechura is known as a very difficult area. There are only about 60 members that attend on a consistent basis, and very few baptisms happen here. My companion is Elder Young.

We had interviews with the President on Friday and he expressed a lot of confidence and trust in me. He said that he put me here to strengthen this branch and help prepare it to one day be a strong area. The branch president is a very cool guy and there are some great youth that will be fun to work with.

March 12

Things are still going slow as far as the work goes due to a trunky companion, but this week was made great by one event alone; the baptism of a 19 year old named Carlos. He’s only got about 1 month knowing the church. He attended church with a friend one Sunday, then played soccer with the missionaries and members on a Monday about 3 weeks ago and from then on he’s had the desire to get baptized. The next step was just giving him the lessons and he was set. This weekend was Stake Conference so on Saturday we took a van down to Piura (where the stake center is) with about 8 young men and Carlos. On Sunday we had the baptism at 12:30 after the general session. More of the branch was able to attend this way, and even President Chipman and his wife came! They spoke at the conference so afterwards we invited them to join us and they did. I’ve never felt the spirit so strongly in a baptism. I was able to conduct, the president gave a brief message, and there was a reverence throughout the whole meeting that was quite moving. Carlos also bore a very powerful testimony. So it was a great weekend. A seventy visited the conference (Elder Pino) along with an area seventy and gave some great messages. I feel motivated to not only find more people to teach, but help the branch president strengthen the members and branch as a whole. I need to remember that it is still MY mission, and what I do in my free time to be productive is up to me.

March 19

It was a fairly good week. We placed a baptismal date for a 23 year old named Edwyn. He’s got great intentions and we hope he can keep progressing and get baptized in two weeks. On Sunday, the president of the branch was unable to attend church, so the first counselor was left in charge of directing the meetings. No one had been assigned talks so 5 minutes before sacrament meeting he said, Hey Elder Young, can you and your companion give 10 minute talks? Thanks. Haha. I talked on humility and was able to use various scriptures to deliver a message. Afterwards I was actually grateful for that opportunity. This is a tough area and branch that is going to stretch me a lot in situations like this and help me grow. The branch here continues to struggle. I’d say about 45 people attended church on Sunday. The Priesthood has about 8 solid men that attend. Sounds like this summer is going to be another busy one and it is just around the corner.

Love you all, P.S. this Saturday I complete 7 months. Woah.

February 2012

February 6

This week was good. We visited the grandma of Kiara and Luis and got her excited for a baptism and she came to realize the real importance of it. She’s 82 and is the type of lady that is just a super women. She has 10 kids and to this day is still full of energy. She was good and ready to be baptized on Sunday, but then decided she wanted to wait just one more week to be able to invite more of her family. She has a ton of grandkids that all live close, so I can definitely see more members of the Culquicondor family getting baptized in the future. Today we got permission to go to a popular place called Catacaus. It’s south of Piura where its actually really green and full of rice fields and cotton fields. It’s got a sweet market with lots of touristy stuff to send home and buy to remember the mission. I’m sending a picture of me and Elder Perero (from Ecuador) in sombreros. I feel comfortable, but there is still a LOT to learn as far as gospel and the language. I’m at the point now where I can communicate sufficiently, but there is still a lot to practice and learn. All that snow looks amazing. I’m sure after the mission I’ll be freezing because it gets up 95 when we’re out in the morning and its not TOO bad for me. Hope all is well up there in the North.

February 13

Hola Family: The rains came this week. Apparently February is the month of rainstorms for Piura. The first one came while I was writing you all a week ago, and it caused all of us to finally bust out umbrellas and waterproof jackets that we never thought we’d use. It’s funny because sometimes a little piece of a rainbow will come out for 20 minutes and the people go crazy. OOOOH how pretty, look! And I just can’t help but think of the full double rainbows that Colorado makes in our back yard. In other news, we got a little ahead of ourselves and did 3 service projects this week. On Wednesday we helped a member build a little fence for a garden in front of her house, then on Thursday in our white shirts and ties we ended up helping an investigator move dirt to the base of the walls outside of her house to prevent the rain from entering, and finally on Saturday all of us elders went and helped a member paint inside her house and move a bunch of stuff. We then scrambled to get everything ready for the baptism for Eva Culquicondor at 4:30. It was a great experience. She is very content and we started teaching one of her granddaughters in her house this week too. I`m really enjoying life here in Lopez Albujar. I know the members who are awesome, we’ve got great investigators, and having 4 other missionaries in the same ward is a blast. I’ve mentioned in the past that we teach a lot of unmarried people, and now this week we’ve seen great progress in three. Remember the 9 year old girl that we baptized in December? Well, we have been teaching the dad now for about 2 weeks. We just found out Saturday that he wants to get baptized and they’re in the process now of getting married so that he can!

February 20

Hello Family: I’ve recently lost my trust in all dogs that we pass by, because some dogs are just the devil here. But the simple act of picking up a rock shows them your serious and they scatter. It was a good week. I think I told you all last week about one man who wants to get married so that he could get baptized. This last week we tried really hard to get them married and figure out the papers necessary to get him baptized on Sunday, but at the last moment it didn’t work out. But, we have plans for them getting married on Friday and him getting baptized on either the same day, or Saturday or Sunday. It has been a beautiful thing watching this family grow. I´m enjoying the time we have with the investigators, but even more so the time with the members. There are some very wonderful people here that do a lot for us and it’s fun to just spend time with them talking and joking. Next week I will be able to tell you if I have another 6 weeks here or if I am changing to my second area. I do feel like my Spanish has excelled a lot in this change and I’m able to remember words a lot easier than in the start. Miss you all ton! Que Dios les bendiga. P.S. It is now the middle of summer. During language study at 2:00 it is 95 degrees in our room and the sun is a scorcher.

February 27

The news is, I’ll be changing areas tomorrow. The zone leaders announced it this morning that me, Elder Johnson, and Elder Perero will be leaving Lopez Albujar. – It’s not a surprise to anyone that I am leaving because I have the longest time here. I said a lot of goodbyes yesterday at church and will spend the night saying goodbye to my converts. It is a weird feeling knowing that I’ll have to get to know a whole new ward, area, zone, and companion, but I’m really excited at the opportunity.

We had the wedding of Juan Alberto on Friday in the chapel. The weddings here are very interesting. And by interesting I mean quite unromantic and nonspecial. A representative from the city comes with a bunch of papers, he reads some legal terms and stuff, then the couple signs a few papers, and they are announced husband and wife. Right afterwards we moved everyone into the room of the baptismal font and baptized Juan Alberto. It was a very happy moment for the family and I have been very blessed to see them transform into a unified family. Then, after wards, we had a mini party for us missionaries in the room. Me, Elder Johnson, and Elder Perero all completed 6 months so we got a cake, ordered hamburgers, and burned some ties. Then on Saturday, the ward had an activity that was a fulbito tournament (soccer). They invited us missionaries to play and we beat the young men. It was really fun. It’s tough to say goodbye to this ward because there are some really awesome people here that I got to know quite well but it is time to move on and see what else is in store.

I just got an email that announced the new President that will be coming in July. Chad and Lisa Rowley from Santaquin, Utah will be the new President and wife.

January 30, 2012

Elder Farmer holding Liahona (Ensign) magazine with picture of his cousin, Sister Kelsey Farmer (cute red head) LDS General Conference/Salt Lake City Temple Square, October, 2011

January 30, 20012

Good week here in the southern hemisphere. This week improved because now Elder Salmon knows almost all of the investigators, members, and area, so we can work more effectively. On Wednesday we had a multi zone conference with the President. He sent out an email about 4 weeks ago and warned everyone that a companionship would be selected on that day to do a 5 minute practice teaching the atonement to an ¨investigator¨ that we would meet that day. So everyone has been studying and focusing on the atonement to prepare. Needless to say, Elder Salmon and I were selected on the spot to participate in the practice and teach in front of about 60 other missionaries. It was a great learning experience and I feel good knowing the president picked us. We spent the whole morning at the conference studying and discussing the atonement; something that we will never be able to fully comprehend but is so powerful when you use it according to peoples needs.

On Thursday Elder Sims hit one year, and it is a tradition in Ecuador and Peru that whenever there is a birthday or accomplishment like this, you crack an egg on the person’s head or throw flour at them. So that’s what we did. I’m sending the picture of the aftermath when Elder Sims charged us with his head and rubbed egg on all of us. Quite hilarious to watch someone smack an egg on someone’s head. In other news, we’ve got a baptismal date for next Sunday for the grandma of Luis and Kiara. I think that does it for this week. Love you fam. Que Dios les bendiga en todo lo que pase en sus vidas. Elder Farmer

January 16 and January 23, 2012

January 16, 2012 We finished the last change strong and baptized someone for the third week in a row. The Lord blessed us with the baptism of Luis´ sister Kiara who is 14 years old The whole family actually attended church and I’m sure in the next change their brother Lindenber with be baptized too. I love that family. In other news, Elder Iribar and the beat-boxing elder, Elder Delgado, are shipping out tomorrow. We don’t know where yet though. We find out those details tomorrow. Tomorrow is the moment of truth. I’ll either get my new companion there at the meeting, or find out that I will be training and get my new companion Wednesday when the new people arrive. It’ll be a good experience nonetheless and we have lots of potential for this next change in our area. Summer is in full and as I write this I am literally dripping sweat off my face. We’re in a poorly ventilated internet cafe, complete with the typical tin roof. Aka, its an oven. Haha. Weird to think you´re all dealing with snow right now…

January 23, 2012 The word on the change is I am in Lopez Albujar for at least 6 more weeks. My new companion is Elder Salmon from Tagna, Peru. That’s the southern most city in Peru I think, so he came practically point to point. He has just over 6 months in the mission and arrived in the same group as Elder Iribar. So far we’re good. Now that I’m the only one that knows the investigators and the area I’ve been leading a lot this week and I feel quite comfortable. We started a little slow in this change but we’re going to find a lot of new people this week. A big problem is that the majority of people here are not married. They get pregnant at a young age and then just never have the money or time or desire to officially get married. Instead, they call it a ¨compromise¨. We’ve got four people we’re teaching that are not married but are really good people. It’s a big difficulty but we can’t just deny them the gospel and the opportunity to grow. Tomorrow I hit the 5 month mark. Aka, the mark that I’ve been looking forward to since before the mission when Justin said at 5 months he had a pretty good grasp on the language. I need to stay focused on the blessings you have in the moment instead of always worrying about the future. The mission is good, fam. Love you all, Elder Farmer

January 2 & January 9, 2012

Baptism on January 8, 2012 of Luis by Elder Ryan Farmer

January 2, 2012
Hello Family: This is going to be a good year and I’m sure the Lord has some awesome stuff in store for me. Church on Sunday was great . . . after church we baptized Diego (12) AND Yeiko (14). They are the kids of the inactives that we found about a month ago. The mom and dad got baptized about 15 years ago and met at a church activity. We were originally going to baptize Diego on Thursday and Yieko on the 15th of January, but the parents wanted them to be able to do it together and on a Sunday so that the Dad could attend when he doesn’t have work. So we did so, and the Dad still didn’t end up coming, but it was a great chance to have the Mom back in the church after many years of being inactive. Maybe she’ll start attending the sacrament meetings soon, too. I was able to baptize Yeiko and finally put those white pants to use (a good thing that a brought because unlike other missions, baptismal clothing is very hard to find here) a really spiritual and powerful experience to submerge someone in the water.
Love you all and Happy New Year. Elder Farmer

January 9, 2012
Helloooo Family: Great successes this week and many blessings. On Tuesday, Luis returned from Ecuador! On Friday, he had his interview with the President and it went great. He left saying, ¨I don’t know why but I always just feel strong when I’m around people like you guys; like I can do anything.” He expressed to the President his desires to one day be a missionary and has been just has awesome as before he left. I had the privilege to get my chest wet again and baptize him on Sunday. He bore a great testimony after about the power of prayer and the changes he’s made. We are teaching his sister and grandma and have plans to baptize them in the coming weeks. Finally, we have another family that has been taking lessons for about 5 months now but the dad just started listening when I got here. They are fasting and praying hard to find a answer and insure their decision to get baptized. It would be really great for Elder Iribar if they were to baptize this next Sunday because it’s almost a guarantee that he’ll be transferred and he has known them for a long time. Next Tuesday will be the day we figure out where Elder Iribar gets changed, and what happens to me. I could change areas, stay and train, or stay and have a different companion. This is the last week of being a little ¨trainee¨ and I will soon see the next chapter of the mission. I’ll be praying hard for Grandpa’s surgery and the health of both gma and gpa.
Love, Elder Farmer

Last two Weeks of 2011

December 19, 2011
Merry Christmas!
Wow, December has gone fast and Christmas has crept up out of nowhere. On Saturday we will have a big activity with the 6 zones around Piura. The president will give a little devotional, then each zone will do a talent or sketch of some sort. My zone decided to do a parody of 2 brand new missionaries trying to teach snow white and the 7 dwarfs. It’s a lot of fun planning it. I was given the part of dopey, of course, so I just make ridiculous faces and act like a wild idiot the whole time.
Last Thursday, me and 8 other North Americans went to Lima. Usually we take care of all of the customs/visa/government stuff in the Lima MTC, but many of us were only there for 3 weeks or less and only finished one part. They told us one Wednesday and we all flew down Thursday night. It was such a blast being with some good friends from the MTC and being together. I hate to say it, but it was really like a mini vacation. They put us in a really nice hotel for the night with hot water and even gave us some Papa Johns pizza. The next day we went to the Government Agency place for 5 hours. The majority of the time was just waiting for our turn and then for them to process stuff. Much like the DMV. But it was a blast cause we all talked and shared experiences. After that we got McDonalds, and to the Lima Temple to take pictures before heading back to the airport. It was a short trip but an amazing memory for the mission. When I got back, Elder Iribar had to break my heart and tell me that Luis, the 19 year old, went to Ecuador to work without telling us. All is well though, and he’ll be back the first week of January to get baptized. He had to go to make money for his family. The work is going well. We have great successes but also, great struggles as well, but that’s all part of the work and I’m just taking it day by day. Love you all and I cant wait to hear your voices on Sunday.
Elder Farmer

December 26, 2011
Family!
Yesterday was great. So good to talk to you all . . . The weirdest part is now understanding what it’s like to be on this end of the line and remembering when Justin and Brandon would call. It was great relating to experiences of Dad, Justin, and Brandon and getting the advice of my brothers. One thing I noticed... before the mission Justin and Brandon’s accents always appeared perfect. But now after being in the culture and hearing nothing but Spanish, their accents were exceptionally gringo on the phone. Maybe they were just talking really clear so I could understand but it was funny.
Anyways, it will be good to get back to the work after a nice relaxing Christmas weekend. I’ve officially hit the same amount of time in the field as I had in the MTC.
Oh, I forgot to mention in the phone call, but I’m becoming quite the beat box champ. Okay not really. But Elder Delgado is insane and before the mission was in a group down in Lima. I’m trying to pick up some skills. Haha. Maybe Jaclyn can explain to the parents what beat boxing is. Love you Family, I’ll write you again next year,
Elder Farmer

December 5 and December 13

December 5, 2011
Hello Family!
Yesterday I had my first baptism. It was a special experience to see this little 9 year old girl so excited and giddy to be baptized. Also to see how the gospel had strengthened the relationship between a mother and her to kids. The mom was beaming. It was a great experience but we didn’t have to work at all. It was a Christmas present from the Lord to send this family our way.
The calendar has switched to December and all the families here are excited about the Navidad. Christmas lights have showed up in all the windows and even Christmas trees in most houses. It will be a great month to find families to teach while everyone is in the spirit of the holiday. We hope and pray that many of our investigators will progress that last extra bit to commit to baptism in the month.
Today marks the completion of one transfer too! On Wednesday we get 16 or so new missionaries. Also, our area is getting 2 more so we’ll have 6 missionaries in the ward. It’s exciting to see the changes that happen and it feels good to finally have one cambio (change aka transfer) under my belt. This will be Elder Iribar´s last transfer in this area because this is his fourth one here. Once he finished up training me he’ll leave to another area for sure. So the next change will be particularly interesting to see what happens as far as who my new companion is and if I stay in this area, etc. Today we went to the market and I bought my first of many soccer jerseys. They’re so cheap here. I got a legit Uruguay jersey for 15 soles, which is about 6 dollars. Life is good down here. The work is tough because we walk a TON, but the members made us 3 meals this week (expect a recipe soon mom). This change should be great. Love you family. Enjoy the cool weather.
Elder Farmer

December 12, 2011
Hello Family!
Every week gets a little better as I get more comfortable in the work and improve little by little at Spanish. The baptism was a great experience and great news and we’ve got another one next week! This one will mean a lot more because he is someone we found knocking doors and we’ve grown to really know him. He’s a 19 year old guy that we found about 3 weeks ago and ever since has been super willing to change according to God’s will. This last week he asked us what the qualifications are to be baptized and if he could be baptized. Yes! He’s got a great desire and even says that he wants to be missionaries like us one day. It is so good to see how the Lord has prepared someone and they were so ready to here the gospel. We are hoping to make Christmas an especially special day with a baptism on that domingo as well. I have seen a drastic change in how much have enjoyed the work this past week. I don’s even mind knocking doors all that much. The Lord is blessing us a lot and I’m very lucky to be here serving Him in this time of year. On Christmas we will have a big missionary activity and members will be feeding us well.
Love you all! Life is good down here in Peru.
Elder Farmer

November 2011

November 13, 2011
Family: Three weeks down in the first transfer. Things are picking up and I feel like once I’ve got just 1 transfer under my belt the mission will be under way. There are really cool missionaries here that make it very enjoyable. The other companionship in our room is Elder Campbell and Elder Delgado. Campbell is going home in 3 weeks and is a riot. He makes things a lot of fun and it’s nice having a English to Spanish human translator near by. Its just the little phrases that are going to take a while to get in my head like ¨all of a sudden´´, etc. After writing last week we went to a milkshake place in central Piura and it was cool actually seeing the city. Then we went to the market, which you can only go to like once a month because its not the safest place. Today we had an activity as a zone and played soccer at a nearby chapel. Love, Elder Farmer

November 21, 2011
Happy thanksgiving family!
Your emails inspire me to try harder and enjoy life every week so thank you. This thanksgiving actually marks 3 months for me. Can you believe it? The mission will get faster and fasters as I learn the language. Thanks for the emails everyone.
We had good success this week in progressing our investigators but I’m still hoping for the first baptism. We know they’ll happen sooner or later we just need to be patient with each person. It’s frustrating not being able to converse with people still and understand what they’re saying perfectly. But that will come eventually.... somehow. Love you all family, I am Thankful for you all this thanksgiving. Also for Joseph Smith and the restoration, and Jesus Christ. We really do have the best family ever. For real.
Elder Farmer

November 28, 201
Family,
Sounds like another awesome holiday took place at the farmer household. Games, food, plenty of laughter (im sure), and a super cute baby to steal the show. This week was some of the most enjoyable times I’ve had so far in Piura. For thanksgiving I woke up and asked Elder Campbell (who is going home in a week) what he was thankful for... and that was that haha. Just a normal day. I’ve been able to see how much the lord has blessed me by putting me with a solid companion that works hard. Also, the ward is probably the best you will find in the whole mission. They are very helpful in the work. On Sunday we had a little training activity to discuss ways that the members can help share the gospel and give us references. I gave a 10 minute little part and I feel pretty good about my Spanish. We made great strides this week with investigators and even had 5 people attend church. We’ve got 1 baptism this coming Sunday of a little 9 year old girl whose mom baptized 15 years ago but went inactive. Last Sunday they showed up and the mom told us she wanted to be back in the church and have her daughter baptized. A missionary’s dream. The daughter is excited every time we go to teach too.
There really isn’t anything ¨special¨ about Piura culture wise, but the people are great and all have a good faith. So that makes teaching the restored gospel even better when you can explain why there are so many churches and that Christ restored his. The gospel is an incredible blessing that our family has had thanks to amazing parents. Love you all. Hope your lives are successful and filled with awesomeness. Elder Farmer

November 7, 2011

Family: What a glorious 20 minutes I just had reading all of your emails. . . . I can see that the ability to enjoy the language will only increase more and more every week as I pick more up. But the language isn’t TOO bad. I feel pretty comfortable as far as imperfect and subjunctive and stuff go, but now it’s just being able to understand, know the words/verbs, and sentence structure. I’m still in the translating every thought from English to Spanish phase of course but with time that will switch over. It’s just insane to comprehend how I will know every word or phrase without having to think of it one day.

This week went by much faster than the first. The weather is getting hotter and hotter but this past week we worked really hard. We found a bunch of new investigators, taught 24 lessons, and contacted 100 people (this only includes people that we were able to talk to long enough to invite to church or share a brief thought with at their door or in the street). Our area is pretty small and secluded from central Piura so I don’t know much about the city but I can tell you about a place called the polverines haha - a housing development that is very poor, and yet to have electricity, and is pretty much where people have built a bunch of forts in the desert sand. We’re working hard and should have a baptism by the next time I write. The ward families here are very welcoming and helpful . . . Thanks for the thoughts and words of encouragement – your words mean a whole heck of a lot. Love – Elder Farmer

Hello From Piura Peru!

Piura, Peru: "La Primera Ciudad"

October 31, 2011

It sure feels good to finally be able to write! The last 7 days have been quite the journey. The last Saturday in the MTC we went out tracting. They bused three different groups to different stakes around Lima. It was a good experience and it’s amazing how much poverty there is. Down next to the street the houses are quite nice, but then up above and packed into the hills are shacks just crammed in. We left the Lima CCM (MTC) on Tuesday and arrived at the small, one runway, one baggage claim airport at 3 in the afternoon. The President and his wife and 6 other missionaries were there to greet us and take us to the mission home. The mission home is a beautiful home that is well gated in a rich neighborhood. What would honestly probably cost up to 650k in Colorado only costs 50,000 here. No joke. Anyways, we ate a late lunch, did orientation stuff as far as health and finances, had a testimony meeting, then had burgers and went to the office down the street to sleep while 3 hermanas slept in beds in the mission home. The next morning we went to the home for breakfast, then to a chapel to meet our new companions and head out to our areas. How’d we get to our area you ask? Moto taxi. Probably 1 in 3 houses or more has one. It’s essentially a motorcycle with a cage attached to the back that seats two or three. Everyone’s job out here is a moto taxi driver it seems. My companion is Elder Iribar from Uruguay. He’s only got 6 weeks longer than I do, but 12 weeks longer in the field because he only spent 3 weeks in the MTC because he didn’t need language training, obviously. But yeah, I never thought I’d have a trainer that only has 2 transfers but he is great. We’re serving in Piura Central in the area called Lopez Albojar. It’s only about 10 minutes in the taxi to get here. Our apartment is one of the nicest in the zone apparently, but that’s still not saying much. We live in the upstairs apartment. Two rooms and a bathroom and another sink. We don’t have cooking stuff because everyone in the mission has a pensionista (sp) that serves 3 meals a day and does laundry once a week. Everyday has its ups and downs. Learning a new language is more than you can really imagine until you’re actually out here trying to do it. I did expect most of it though having seen Brandon and Justin do it. But little by little it will come. We work really hard out here. We’re in a very successful area that is safe. areas have to be inside by 6 and some cant even knock on doors. But here, we never get the door slam and we usually get people to agree to let us come back some day. So we wake up, go to our pensionista´s house just across the street for breakfast until 8, study until 10 and then go out until lunch at 1. We study the language from 2-3 then go out again for the rest of the afternoon until dinner at 8. Right now we’ve got 2 baptisms coming up this weekend and probably around 6 or 7 other investigators. I’m sure I’m having very similar experiences to Justin. Dogs everywhere, the walls of houses are concrete but sometimes made out of whatever people can find, with dirt floors, dirt streets, trash everywhere. While you all are just starting to get snow, summer is just beginning here. It’s about 85 during the days and the people say that it’s just warming up and it’s going to be really hot through March. But, despite the language and the fact that I’m always tired, at the end of the day it isn’t so bad. The members are really nice, the people are humble and my companion is a great worker. This area has a lot of success, which makes the work fun and exciting but it’s hot as hatties. I love the people and members and my companion but can’t understand them or talk to them yet. I can feel the help of Heavenly Father every day and it’s a pleasure to serve the Lord. Today was p-day so we had a zone activity. We drove about 10 minutes down and then a 30 minute walk to a zoo. It was only 20 cents to walk the park and they had about 10 cages with your typical animals. In one decent sized metal cage was the most ferocious of them all: a house cat. haha. Then we played soccer, rested in the apartment, and now we’re emailing in a cafe just minutes from our apartment. We’ll go out to work at 6 again. Love you all so much, Elder Farmer

October 21, 2011

Hey - This letter is going to be shorter than the rest, most likely, because time is ticking and they really crack down on only 30 minutes here. They posted agenda sheets from mission presidents a couple days ago. There are about 20 of us heading up to Piura and we’ll leave on Tuesday. We’ll fly up and land at 3 where we will meet the president and his wife before driving to the mission home. There we will have ¨lunch¨, go over introductions, have dinner, do a testimony meeting, spend the night in the office while the sisters sleep in the mission home. The next morning we head out to our specific areas to meet our senior companions. They doing a new program too where we’ll be with our trainer for 12 weeks, or the first two transfers. So for the first 3 months I’ll have the same trainer. It’s good because that way you just progress better and one person can really focus on getting you prepped in the language and teaching, etc. The big question for everyone is whether we’ll get a Native companion or North American. Both have their ups and downs. With the latino companion you would be forced to speak the language all the time and would help those that are disciplined in speaking it as much as they can. With a NA trainer, it would be a lot easier to ask him out to say something, ask him what someone said on the street, etc. So we’ll see.

This past week went fast. Oh, and you’re probably wondering why this letter is coming today and not Wednesday. On Wednesday a guy visiting that works with all of the MTC´s around the globe. So they changed the day of p-day to Friday because he was here from Tuesday to Thursday and wanted to see how it functioned on normal scheduled days. The language is progressing as much is it can. Some days I really wonder how it is possible to do it but I know it’ll come with time and pain, haha. I’m not sure what more to say, but I love you all and am truly enjoying my experience out here. I don’t enjoy every hour but I enjoy everyday when all is said and done. I’ve never been so tired in my life and I know it’ll only multiply times 10 once I start walking for 8 hours a day, but I guess that’s a good indication. It’s weird to think that my MTC time is up and now I’m about to be an actual missionary, teaching real people. It’s go time I suppose. I must admit though, it’s not as scary as jumping of a 75 foot ledge, so I’m glad I got that experience.

Friends, be sure to send letters to the Piura Mission now because I’ll be out of the MTC.

Love ya´ll. Elder Farmer

Lima, Peru Week 1

Hola Granjero Familia!

Granjero is farmer in Spanish... and thats my response when latinos here have a tough time pronouncing farmer. ¨Elder granjero! oh!¨

Good week. It didn’t take long to get in the groove. After the first day I was a little nervous about the food, but that has since changed quite a bit and I love it. Lima has become a big cooking capital. I’m not sure what sparked it but there are a lot of chiefs that come out here and lots of inspired dishes in the city. So, we get fed quite well here. It’s rice and chicken with every meal but the flavors are what they change up. They also give us good appetizers and soups and bread. Every once in a while you’ll get some good pork or beef and then twice a week for desert we’ll have delicious cake that the president orders in. Then every night at 8:30 we get have a banana or orange in the cafeteria or even ice cream bars. I’m not speaking as much Spanish as I thought I would. With the North Americans we mostly speak English. Sometimes we try to speak Spanish but we’re so tired of battling through a conversation with latino companions that we just speak English to each other. But I am learning more things from the latino campanions in my room. My comp is elder Parra from Columbia - 19 and has been a member his whole life. We teach together probably 3-4 times a week and so far it’s been really good. Bostidas is also from Columbia and is the latino companion to my north American companion Elder Woodburn. He´s 24 and the only member in his family. Good guys. Woodburn is from Spokan, WA.

Today we got to go out and enjoy the city a bit on our way to the temple. We cram 17 missionaries onto an already packed bus and go about 5 blocks down to the temple. Afterwards we get to go to a local store called Tottus which is like a Walmart. Very nice. Then we headed up to a little member store where I bought a cheap tie. For the first p-day they don’t want us taking our cameras because they want us to concentrate on getting our bearings on the location rather then just take pictures. So next week I’ll take pictures at the temple and other places and send them to you. These computers aren’t as locked down as the mtc in Provo so we can hook our cameras up to the computer and send them. Ill send a separate email of a few pictures right now.

The schedule is more broken up here than Provo in that we could change activities every hour. Every day we have an hour of gym time here too, so of course we play soccer. There is a pretty nice turf field, probably 3/5 the length of an actual field. It’s a really fun way to connect with the latinos but it{s extremely difficult to play when all you can say is, Äqui! Aqui! And, the more we play, the more crazy the latinos go. Some don’t have any sportsmanship, bend rules, FLOP and act injured (which is quite funny), and it gets really contentious between them. But it’s a blast nonetheless. I’ve noticed outside of soccer how even with a language barrier, humor, the spirit, and comradery can still translate. And the teachers have the same passion, and sincerity as those in Provo. The gospel is the same everywhere. I love it.

Its a roller coaster through out the day. Some hours go really well, the next you’ll feel like you cant say anything, but all in all the days are good. I just want to know Spanish already! haha. And sometime I really wonder how it’s possible to learn it all. But I’ll get there someday.

Love you all. Hope your lives are going well. Things are just peachy here on the other side of the equator.

Elder Farmer

Lima, Peru MTC

October 6, 2011

Hola! Buenos dias!

I am officially in the southern hemisphere. All the traveling was smooth sailing. We had to meet at the travel office at 5:00 am, hopped on the plane at 8:00 and landed in Atlanta by 12:30, but 2:30 E.T. We walked towards our gate and decided to stop off at some pay phones. I only managed to call Mom and planned on calling more after getting some food. In the panda express line a lady approached us with a huge smile. Turns out she was born in Venezuela and was converted in Washington, D.C in the 90´s. She bought me and another Elders food (Elder Wright who just got his flight plans on Monday, and who I knew from BYU-I) and then shared her conversion story with us. She told us about how she felt the spirit and that you don’t need to know the language perfectly, as long as you look the people in the eye and talk with sincerity and have the Holy Ghost. We even practiced some horrible gringo Spanish on her. After 30 minutes or so we headed down to the gate where they were already boarding at 3:45. We scarfed down as much food as we can, but then assuming I had time to spare I went over to a pay phone and gave Mom another call (I had no time to look in my back pack for other numbers). When I got back to the gate they were all frantically trying to hurry us on board, and I almost missed the flight! Phew. The flight was long but we were spoiled and they served a couple snacks and a meal and plenty of drinks. We talked to a really nice guy next to us who lived in Lima but was visiting his kids who go to college in South Carolina. He only spoke Spanish and we talked to him off and on and even a little bit about what we would be preaching. The older folks here talk really low and mumble, its ridiculous. But it’s still fun. We landed at 10:30 Peru time after a 7 hour flight, and the airport was packed. We found our bus driver and headed out. The streets were packed and people drive INSANE here... The weather is perfect - a mild 65 degrees with breeze and light humidity. But it’s going to start getting hotter. I got into my room at 12:45. There are 2 North Americans in one room and two latinos. My latino companion is Elder Parra from Columbia. He just arrived yesterday too with another Columbian. It is their first day so they’ve been in meetings all day. I’ll spend a lot of time with my North American companion, Elder Woodburn, because latines and americans have separate classes.

Life should be good here. I’m excited to start picking up more of the language. I was put with a district that has been out 6 weeks as well, but they all got their Visas at the scheduled time. So they’ve been here for 3 weeks. They’re all really cool guys. The food is mas o menos. They serve chicken and rice every meal apparently. There are 3 big buildings here. Administration, rooming, and then the cafeteria and computer lab. Next Wednesday is our p-day so I’ll email then. We get to go to the temple and then go shopping at some stores. I’m excited to get a Peruvian soccer jersey and everyone always looks forward to stuffing their face with as much sweets and other food as they can before they have to return to chicken and rice.

But, all is well. I´m just happy to be out here and to have reached this next chapter in the mission. The next four months will be all about tackling the language barrier. We´ll see how I am by Christmas. Dearelders don't come here too often, so I’ll most likely just see your e-mails.

Time is up. Hope all is well

Love from Peru, Elder Farmer

Semana 5

September 28, 2011

Hola Familia,

Hope you're enjoying the pictures. Notice the light saber pictures. Pretty cool that the MTC would provide such things, huh? The tall, tall guy is Elder Duda - definitely the best friend I've got here. He's legit. The other good friend is Elder Bartlett.

Exciting news this week! The Lord has definitely been dishing out blessings to me. Friday, I got my VISA! There was a note in the mail saying to visit the travel offices ASAP. It was an overwhelming feeling thinking that it finally came. I've heard of people having less than 12 hour notice too, so I was mentally preparing myself to leave the next morning. Luckily, I found out that I don't leave until October 5th so I’ve got some time to mentally prepare and spend more time with the district.

Friday night Elder Duda was talking to someone in line in the cafeteria. They were talking about how 40 Visa's have made progress but only ONE guy has gotten word. That lucky guy is Me. Only downside is I'm traveling solo. I have to be at the travel offices of the MTC by 5:00 Wednesday morning. I fly out of SLC at 8:30 and land in Atlanta Georgia at 2:20. I then fly out of there at 4:40 and land in Lima, Peru at 10:30 p.m. So I think I'll actually be landing at 12:30 a.m. Peru time. It was definitely an answer to my prayers. Then, on Sunday, I was assigned to District Leader. I hadn't had the chance to tell any of the branch presidency about my flight plans so I told them that I only had 10 days left at that point. The 2nd counselor (who is AWESOME by the way – a former mission president in Chile) was a little hesitant at first but that assured me that a call is a call and the Lord had a purpose no matter the time restraint. So I quickly dove in to leading the district.

Man, the spirit here is nuts. One is music. It's amazing how you're away from music for a while and are so desperate for the spirit that once you get to hear an awesome hymn or anything you just get all giddy. At devotional and stuff it's funny when they announce what song we'll be singing for preludes and there's a big buzz of excitement over a hymn! But it's good. And, there is a Sister in the district that just pounds those ivories. We'll go find a piano after meals sometimes and one day she played Clair de Lune, which is what I listened to pretty much every night at BYU-I, and it was awesome. Two is just the study time. I started marking up my scriptures quite a bit more. I’m always finding myself going crazy over an awesome scripture (Alma 8:7 - I think). Just in general, the spirit has been powerful this past week.

Conference this weekend should be a great way to spend my last few days with the district. Look for a new General Authority speaking on the Saturday morning session. He's from Mexico and just so happened to sit next to us at a meal one night. Another gentlemen that was with him told us the news and so we turned to the new GA and congratulated him and greeted him. We're all stoked for it because, of course, as missionaries we're always anxious for more spiritual things to feast on.

We did a temple session today and when we got out, families of new incoming missionaries were everywhere taking pictures. It's weird thinking that 5 weeks ago I was doing the same thing with Brandon, Jaclyn, Mare, and Scott. Every time I see these anxious families dropping off their kids it takes me way back to when I was just a new missionary. Oh wait... I'm only 5 weeks in. I know I’m still a noob, but it is amazing to see how much better I am at Spanish and how far I’ve already come. And now in just 7 days I'll be off to the Peru MTC and then 19 days after that leaving to the field. The next time I write a big letter with probably be from Peru! Exciting.

Hope all is well for everybody!

Love, Elder Farmer

Semana 4

Family: It will be one month on Saturday. Crazy. Today was another great week and it flew by.

Last Thursday the dearelders were back up again and I got 11 letters. ELEVEN. It feels so good hearing from people. I've got a lot of writing to do today though.

The barbershop rocks here. NOT. I went to get my haircut on Monday and told the lady, "I usually do a 7 on top, 5 on the sides or 6 on top and 4 on the sides. They usually do it with scissors but whatever is easier for you." Without any clarification the lady just started going like the Tasmanian devil. She started blasting off the sides and I thought it looked super short but I just didn't say anything. 4 minutes and 33 seconds later (not the actual time) I was left with a buzz cut - practically. My hair has not been this short since 6th grade. It's probably about 3/4's a centimeter in length and then even shorter on the sides. Everyone in the district had quite a laugh at it. But seriously, how do you mess up so bad?! I even said at the end jokingly, "So what if I were to say I want it longer?" "Well then that's your fault." Pff! But it turns out my head actually has a nice shape and it's not that bad, I guess. On the bright side, I won't need a haircut for 4 months.

Last night we heard from Elder Russel M. Nelson. It was a unique devotional that was more of a MTC wide discussion and learning experience rather than a magnificent edifying feeling that happened after Holland.

Still no word on the Visas. Apparently Peru got a new government in July so it will be heavily affecting missionaries in August and September. I’m thinking I’m going to just finish my training here but I want so badly to experience the Peru MTC. Either was that’s God’s plan. Me and my great friend Elder Duda tell everyone everyday that we love the MTC. My teachers are bomb and a great example.

It’s hard to tell you everything but hopefully you all get a taste for what I’m doing and feeling. I love this work and I know that the gospel of Jesus Christ is for everyone. I look forward to getting started in Peru and helping establish hope through faith in the Savior. This last week I took a lot of time to ponder and study prayer. It’s real and available to everyone. If we could just get the world to pray, a lot of pain would go away. Personal revelation and a real relationship with God is available through prayer.

Love you all, Thanks for the love and support that keeps me going.

Elder Farmer

(I also forgot to mention that on Saturday we went outside for gym and could clearly hear the stadium cheering for the Utah vs BYU game. But in the end I don't think we missed much.)