July 2 and July 9

July 2

 Elder Pereyra, President & Sister Chipman, Elder Farmer

Training is awesome so far.  Really.  The mission is so enjoyable when you have a companion that really wants to work and you can make the calls. My companion is Elder Pereyra from Huankayo, Peru. He’s 20 years old and super short. At the transfers meeting, President took advantage and invited practically the whole mission to make it his farewell. He and his wife shared a lot testimonies and gave some good advice and then said bye, one by one. President Chipman flew home on Saturday at 9 in the morning and the new President took control. We still haven’t heard anything from him but we’re pretty sure he’s in the mission home getting to work. 

Its fun being a trainer and its really forcing me to dedicate myself more to the work. I now have more desire than ever to teach and have good numbers. We are waking up on time, having our companionship studies, leaving at the right time in the afternoon, and really concentrating on teaching with the spirit. We also baptized Edu yesterday!  (The 18 year old that we found a month and a half ago that really has great desires to change his life.)  And, many other investigators are making great strides. I have so much desire to help these people become members of the church and have a really a great relationship with all of them. Aracely and Wilder should finally be getting married on the 14th because the relief society did a fundraiser and we finally have money. Clara Torres is another that is progressing great and has such a big heart. Really, family, the mission is the greatest when you can just focus on the people and ¨lose yourself¨. 

President Chipman and Sister Chipman are going to have a meeting for all the family members of missionaries here in Piura and RM´s that they got to know here.  It’s going to be in Utah in a church building in Salt Lake City on July 15th. I don’t have the address right now but I’ll send it soon. Brandon and Jaclyn and maybe even Scott should definitely try and go! I told President Chipman that he will recognize my brother right away because he looks just like me, only taller. Hope all is well family. Enjoy the heat!

July 9 (Trip to Catecaus)

Things have been going well here training. Me and Elder Pereyra get along really well and he is very enthusiastic and willing to learn. I’m learning a lot personally too and we are doing a lot of great things. This week we found a family of 3 very prepared to accept the gospel. Alejandra, 34, and her two sons Fernando, 15, and Brando, 12. They have been struggling as a family to stay unified and we were able to enter their lives at just the right moment. The only difficulty is that they are looking for another house because the renter asked them to move and we are hoping they find one inside our area. Pray on their behalf, please! We are also finalizing the last details of the wedding of Wilder and Aracely. The relief society did a fundraiser a week and a half ago but still don’t have any of the money that people owe them. But, once we get it, we’ll be able to marry them in no time. They are also a couple very willing to change their lives and I have grown to love them quite a bit. We have other young kids that are also progressing and just about to be baptized. Every change I’ve had here has started out with HUGE potential. I’m hoping that this one can actually end well with all of the baptisms that we have possible.

On Thursday we met the new president and his wife.  President Rowley still remembers quite a bit of Spanish from when he served in Argentina, but Sister Rowley has forgotten the majority after serving in Columbia many moons ago. They are a couple from Nephi, Utah.

Elder Farmer shopping in Catecaus

Today we went to Catecaus and I went a little crazy buying stuff for the parents. One thing that I bought was an original painting by a very cool guy that has a gallery there. I’ve entered 3 or 4 times before but never left when anything. I would just go and talk to the guy and observe his amazing art. But this time I walked away with one. I’m including a picture and the one that he is holding is the one I bought. There was another one that I wanted but decided to go for one a little more basic (the one of the Peruvian Indian).  I also got measured up to get a suit made. A brother from another ward makes suits at a great price and I figured I’d take advantage of it and get myself a fitted suit.

But, life is good out here family. Love you all!

Elder Farmer

Pictures...

Peruvian Tan...

The view...

"We'll bring the world His truth!"

June 2012

June 4, 2012  The mission is truly enjoyable when you are working hard and can visibly see the blessings of the Lord through baptisms. For that very reason, this last week was a bit tough. ha. We started off very strong on Tuesday, but little by little we taught less and less people each day. This is one part of the mission where I feel like we´ve got to reevaluate our strategy and mindset and get going big this week. We need to find new people to teach! On Thursday Elder Salmon went to Lima to get his eye checked out. If you reference to the emails from february, you´ll remember that when I was with Elder Salmon in Lopez we went to the doctor three times to get his eye checked. Anywho, its still red and inflamed so he went to Lima for 24 hours to get it looked at by a specialist. So, i spent the day with the pensionistas son, Franco, who just got back from his mission 2 weeks ago.

It looks as though once again, the wedding of Wilder and Aracely is going to fall through. The wedding is going to cost 180 soles/about 75 dollars and they still have not been able to save up the money along with all the necessary forms. They are supposed to get married on staruday and get baptized on Sunday but we`ll see. There is still a lot of hope for this month, but every person progresses so slowly and requires so much attention. It´s like a big puzzle trying to find them all, teach them all, and help all of them understand the truthfulness of our message.

June 11, 2012  …Anywho,   Esta semana fue muy dura. Estamos luchando cada dia a encontrar nuevas personas para enseñar. Tipicamente la gente aca en Piura nos recibe al toque, pero recien, no hemos tenido ningun exito tocando puertas. El barrio tampoco esta apoyandonos con referencias o actividades, pero vamos a esforsarnos mas en estas ultimas semenas para ensegurar que se envelocran en la obra. Tenemos un nuevo lider misional y muchos planes para mejorar el barrio. La iglesia aca en Sudamerica es muy diferente en cuanto a como se funciona. Extraño la iglesia en los estados pero tal vez solo me siento asi porque veo las casas diferente ahora que soy misionero. Este cambio solo tiene 5 semanas en vez de 6 porque el nuevo presidente esta por llegar y no quiren que el tenga que hacer los cambios. Entonces, el proximos cambio va a tener 7 semanas y el nuevo presidente llegarà en la segunda semana. Muy cortito el cambio y todavio no hemos tenido un bautismo, pero esperamos que una joven se bautize el domingo. Ojala.

Bueno, gracias hablantes españoles por traducir esto a sus esposas. Ahora, algien por favor ayuda a los padres para que entiendan tambien. Me falta aprender y perfeccionar mucho del español pero, por ahi estamos.  Cuidense.   Les quiero mucho. Que tengan una buena semana.

English Translation by Justin:

June 11, 2012. . .Anyway,  this week was very difficult.  We are struggling every day to find new people to teach.  Typically the people here is Piura will receive us when we knock, but lately we haven't had any luck knocking doors.  The ward isn't supporting us with references or activities either, but we are going to make an effort in these final weeks to make sure that we "something" in the work.  We have a new mission leader and many plans to better the ward.  The church here in South America is very different when it comes to how it functions.  I miss the church in the states but maybe I feel this way because I see things differently now that I am a missionary.  This transfer will only have 5 weeks in it instead of 6 because the new mission president is going to arrive and they don't want him to have to handle the transfers.  Thus, the next transfer will have 7 weeks in it and the new mission president will arrive during the second week.  It is a very short transfer and we still haven't had a baptism but we are hoping that a youth gets baptized this Sunday.  Hopefully.  Well, thanks Spanish speakers for translating this for your wives.  Now, something please help our parents to understand this too.  I still have a lot to learn and a lot of perfecting to do with my Spanish, but there we are. Take care of yourselves.

June 11, 2012  Mom and Dad,    It sounds like it was a wonderful week with the family. I was thinking about you all every day and imagining what activities you must have been doing in that moment. You should have brought the slip and slide here because even though we are now in winter, there is plenty of heat during the day. Thanks for including me in your toast dad.  That was very special to hear about. The whole day sounds like it went quite well with all the visits from old friends, family, and a beautiful luncheon.   I miss you all tons and being able to relax at Scotts or go and see the animals at the Savages, but I wouldn´t want to be anywhere else but here at this point in my life.  Every day is a challenge but also a learning experience for when I’m a husband or father.  I feel the love of my heavenly father more than ever as a missionary and I see the people in a completely different light now that every second is devoted to sharing this gospel.  How amazing is it that the apostasy is over and that God has given us his power and authority again in the earth do perform is work. The restoration is real and I testify of that. It was a tough week and we are struggling to find new people, but we have plans to get the ward more involved in the work and have a select few investigators that have a lot of potential.

 June 19, 2012

This week was an improvement. We had a baptism! It was the fourth time that I personally have gotten the old chest wet in the sin filled waters of another person. Diana, the daughter of Wilder and Aracely, got baptized yesterday on Sunday.  We’ve now been teaching them for about 12 weeks and even still, their understanding of the restoration and the gospel is very minimal, but the Lord has a way of preparing the people if they are willing to exercise the faith. The ward is planning an activity to try and help Aracely and Wilder raise money to get married on the June 29th.  There are many others that have almost received a testimony, but they don’t keep their commitments.  

We now only have one week left of the transfer.  I’m praying that I can stay in this area. I don’t want to leave behind so many people that are just about to progress or be baptized. And I want to see the ward progress as well.

On Friday we had a huge activity that the President and his wife planned with three stakes. Piura, Miraflores, and Castilla. It was a music themed activity and every zone presented a song. There were other performances and testimonies and we ended the night by singing a song called Faith in every step, with about 100 missionaries from 5 different zones. It was great because after the activity, all the families that I got to know in Lopez Albujar were there and I got to talk to them for a bit. In January we baptized Diego and Yieko, two brothers who have parents that are inactive. On Friday, the whole family was there and told us that the two younger kids, ages 9 and 8, are going to get baptized on Saturday. Lopez Albujar is baptizing quite a bit and many of them are family members of the people that I baptized with Elder Iribar.  It was an enjoyable week but the ward still needs a lot of work.

 June 25, 2012   Re:  I’m Pregnant

I´m going to be a dad! haha. At 10 months out.  I got a call yesterday from our zone leader saying, ¨I have good news, you`re going to train¨. So last night I went to the mission office to get trained to be a trainer by the assistants and the president. There are 6 new missionaries arriving from the CCM tonight, and tomorrow in the main transfer meeting, they`ll announce the companionships.   So I will be in Ramon Castilla until October because training is an automatic 2 transfers and due to the new president coming in, I´ll have 13 weeks of training instead of the typical 12.   It´s going to be a very interesting first week. I just need to remember in every second how I felt when I was new.

We should be having a baptism next sunday if all goes well. On Friday, a foundation out of Utah called Cause for Improvement ((or something like that) came through Piura. They have been in Peru for the last week and will be making their way down the map for the next month giving out free glasses. The Lions Club, which is also a group out of Utah, has various members throughout the world and they were responsible for giving certain people tickets to this charity event.  I went with 5 other elders to translate. They have 40 suitcases filled with donated glasses and a specific process of filing through the people and giving them glasses that fit their eyes. I was put at the last station where we raise awareness and check for something called Carnosidad. Look it up.  Its pretty much just a sun disease that causes nasty spots to form in your eyes and then you go practically blind. It’s a problem here because we are so close to the equator and people don’t wear sunglasses. It was a fun experience being able to talk to Americans again but i realized how extremely awkward it is to have a conversation in English. We were there from 8 in the morning until 3 helping out. About 10 of the 15 were members.  This week the relief society is putting on a fundraiser to raise money for Wilder and Aracely so that they can get married. Then later on they`ll get baptized - Aracely for sure, and wilder if he can stop going to the bottle.  It’ll be fun having two more changes here in Ramon Castilla being able to train.

May 2012

May 7, 2012  

I am getting fat.  Alright, not really, but you’d be surprised as to how much we eat. I’m a little ashamed to say it, knowing how poorly Justin ate in Mexico with delicious cow stomach tacos, and Brandon losing about 25 pounds in Ecuador, but it’s true. It is a huge blessing to have a pensionista that gives us 3 meals a day and great members that feed us lunch on the weekends.  One thing you need to understand is that here, if there isn’t rice, it’s not a meal. They eat rice at least once a day with lunch and sometimes for dinner as well. The members always give us an unhumanly mound of rice and other stuff. I guess you could say I am getting a little bit of a gut.

Good news this week... we had a baptism! There is an investigator named Jesus that was supposed to get baptized my first week here but he suddenly started working a ridiculous amount and we couldn’t find him until two Saturdays ago. He still had the desire to get baptized so we talked with him again throughout the week and baptized him on Sunday.  It was great for us to finally get a baptism in this transfer. It is very fun to testify everyday that, because God loves us, he has put prophets and apostles back on the earth, along with the power, authority, and truth that we need to return to his presence. Spanish is good. Some days I feel like a pro, whereas in other moments I can still feel quite green. My companion says I speak well, I just need to work on the little things - the articles of la, lo and el for example. 

May 14     It was nice to see your faces and be able to talk to all of you. It was especially amazing to be able to see the view from the deck and remember sitting at the table, eating a nice steak on those Sunday afternoons with the family. You all look quite well and I am motivated to work hard every time I hear of the successes and happiness you are having. As you all know it is the last week of the transfer and we will be praying hard so that Walter, Hunberto, Hansel, and Ronald can get baptized on Saturday.  We’ll also be doing plenty of knocking so that we find investigators for the upcoming transfer.

May 21      We ended the change pretty well with one baptism this weekend. Walter is a 16 year old who has 2 friends that are members. He’s been attending church ever since I got here and even seminary at 6 in the morning for the past 3 weeks. He’s a real solid kid who has great desires.

This last week we had a district service project and helped our pensionista paint her house. We were there for 4 hours in the morning trying to paint every wall white, sweating gallons. But it was fun to be with the other elders from the district and have some laughs.

In other news, Elder Saavedra is getting transferred. We were pretty set on having another opportunity to work together and baptize those that didn’t get baptized this change.  Tomorrow I will receive a new companion.  The start of a new transfer is always an interesting feeling. There is a lot of encouragement that comes from having the opportunity to improve on things you’ve been slacking on and having 6 fresh weeks ahead.

May 28

Monday night Elder Saavedra said all of his goodbyes.   He looked at me and said `you better work your tail of too. Don’t blow it’.   I was ready and excited for the challenge.  At the beginning of the transfer meeting I saw all my past companions, one of which being Elder Salmon.  I was with him in Lopez Albujar for one transfer and I taught him the area. While I left and went to Sechura, then came to Ramon Castilla, he stayed in Lopez.  So anywho, president started announcing the changes. ` in the zone of Castilla, Elder salmon will be returning to work with - because they didn’t do it right the first time (laughter) - Elder Farmer in Ramon Castilla``. woah! It was a big surprise.  Having the same companion twice doesn’t happen often and it happened.  We already know each other and right away I told him we were going to work are tails off.   I commented to Justin how some nights you walk back to the apartment feeling great because people listened to you and respected you, but last Friday was a tough day because we lost various golden investigators.  I was feeling pretty down and wondering why those kind of days happen when my hopes and attitude is so high.  I opened the bible and randomly turned to Mathew 10.  It was an incredible motivation and testimony builder on the scriptures.  It is when Christ authorizes his apostles and instructs them on there missions.  I invite you all to read it and compare it to you personal lives.

April 23 - 30, 2012

April 30, 2012

 There still have not been any baptisms, but we have been able to keep 12 people on a baptismal date. These final 3 weeks will be a long stretch to get some serious work done. We’ve got two weeks to finalize the wedding plans of Wilder and Araceli (but its about 50 times easier than the process that Jaclyn is going through right now - we just need to track down the necessary documents, call the judge her 80 dollars, and sign some paperwork. But even that can be quite the headache when they don’t have work and Wilder is falling into temptation and drinking...sad.  There is another long list of young men that we are hoping can make it to their baptismal dates with a solid testimony and desire.  We’ve just got a lot of people to visit and such little time in the day. We are really hoping for 5 baptisms by the time we finish this transfer but the patience and work it will require will be quite the trial of faith.  

Mothers day is just one sunday away! Which means the second call home of my mission is just 13 days away. Looking forward to it.

April 23, 2012

Here we are almost 8 months in! 

It was a good week that started out with a good birthday.  They had made a sign with balloons saying Happy Birthday Elder Farmer, and Sister Malena  had made me a personal little cake with a candle and everything.  And then, Yes, I was plastered with two eggs and plenty of flour. I had a deliciously think batter in my hair and flour all over my face, arms, shirt and pants.  But, of course, all in good fun.  Then for dinner, our pensionista family spent a little extra money to buy chicken and french fries from a restaurant, complete with a nice American Pepsi to wash it down.

The week went well.  We’ve been able to maintain a good number at 9 people with baptismal dates. However, that is far from a guarantee that all 9 will be baptized. There is a lot of work to do to ensure that it happens.

April 16th - 20th Birthday

A Peruvian Celebration Tradition!

Chicken, French Fries & Pepsi

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