Hey everyone.

I've been here in Cali for a little while now and things are still going really slow. I'm not exactly sure, but I think I'm in the south/south east part of Cali. The people here have a lot more money than the people in Pasto which is cool in some ways and makes things way harder in others.

I haven't had a headache since I got here. I'm thinking it may have been the altitude because I only got them in Bogotá and Pasto. I also bought a pair of cheap sunglasses like Hermana Prince told me so I don’t squint as much in the sun anymore.

So, our church building is always full of these bugs called cucarones. They're basically cockroaches that can fly. It really makes being in the building stressful and it doesn't help that everyone likes to make fun of the fact that they creep me out.

Fun fact: So the sewage system here all goes to a river thing that runs through the middle of the city. Because of this, whenever we get near it we get to smell the poop and pee of every person that has gone to the bathroom in the city. Also, apparently there are a lot of bacteria in the air because of this. It’s a miracle that I haven't gotten parasites or anything yet. Although, I did get a really bad stomach ache a week ago.

I did have the chance to talk to one of the gringos who is in my mtc group and it sounds like everyone is having the same sort of experience. Everyone has had some sort of stomach problems and the majority have had companion problems too. Makes me feel lucky for having had Elder I.

Also, I don't know if you guys realize how appreciated the packages are. They feel kind of like what I imagine a care package in the middle of a war would be. Especially the face products are appreciated. If you guys get around to sending another package, more of the same face soap would be greatly, greatly appreciated...and more of those face pads wouldn't hurt either. But seriously, the packages are great I don't trust the hygiene products they sell here anyway.


Entonces en este momento las cosas son un poquito difícil pero la cosa que me ayuda es la esperanza que será mejor con tiempo. Estoy tratando de se lo mejor misionero que puedo. Sé que esta obra es tan importante y estiy agradecido por la opurtunidad que tengo. Me alegro que estén bien. Si piensan en semanas, no hay mucho tiempo hasta que yo vuelva a casa. Pero ustedes pueden hacer las matemáticas. Listo que estén bien y sigan adelante.

Elder Chase

Hey everyone.

I got transferred out of Pasto after only 1 transfer there. I've been in Cali since last Tuesday. My new zone is called San Fernando and the area is Limonar II. I was really upset about having to leave Pasto. I wasn't expecting it. Usually missionaries stay at least 3 months in their first area to complete their training. I really didn't want to leave. For one, Elder I. is great and he stayed behind in Pasto to start training someone else. Also, we had six baptisms on the 20th that I missed out on. They were all people whom I had started out with since the very first contact.

 My new companion is Elder C. He is also from Perú. He has 20 months in the mission and will probably end it here with me. He seems okay. He loves to talk, but is a lot looser and less focused than Elder I. The worst part is that we are both new to the area because this area just got cut. It used to be the area of the hermanas but they cut it and now Elder C. and I share the ward with the hermanas. Its pretty hard because we started with no investigators, not knowing any of the members or the city. Turns out we are the first Elders this ward has had in 15 years.

On the other hand, Cali seems really cool. Its a lot warmer here. Last night we were outside and it was dark with warm wind blowing. It was pretty nice. Our apartment is a lot nicer than the one I had in Pasto, also. Its new so everything works for the most part. The only bad thing is we have no hot water.

Anyways, these next few weeks should be interesting. I've been getting massive headaches every once and awhile since I arrived on Colombia. Sister Prince said my eyes might be going bad and I should probably get them checked out.

Anyways, aside from being bummed about the transfer, I am still grateful for the opportunity to be here. I know the mission isn't supposed to be easy and I just have to keep pushing through. All the emails and stuff are appreciated. I know that the gospel is true and that it really can change people's lives.

Elder Chase

Hey Everyone!

We went to some place an hour and a half away to go play soccer with some people who hadn't seen missionaries in 11 years or something like that. We got back really late and we're probably gonna hear it for writing past 6 o clock. :)

I got that package last week with the sweaters. They were greatly appreciated. And the face soap, too. The face soap here I'm pretty sure is just making it worse. If you guys ever send another package, more face soap is appreciated. Oh yeah, and I don't know why you guys sent me that white shirt, but it"s appreciated because all my shirts are size 17 and are way too big. I think 16 and a half would have been better but it's not that big of a deal.

To email, Elder I. and I have to go to an internet cafe. There are a whole bunch of them here. There's no way they'd let us have a computer in our apartment, haha.

As far as food goes, I don't think I've had a meal here without rice. I'm so sick of rice. But they do like potatoes and chicken too, and that's pretty good. Elder I. and I eat breakfast in the apartment. I usually make eggs if I'm not feeling lazy. We have lunch at a members house every day. We usually don't eat dinner because people always give us food at every appointment.

I didn't get the picture of my collage in the email. I don't know why, but that's cool that she put that for me. And that's cool that Bishop mentioned me... What did he say? Oh yeah, and I told Jordan to get his papers in so he can get out here already.

Anyways. Sorry I don't have a lot of time, but all the emails and stuff are greatly appreciated. Nos vemos en 21 meses.

Elder Chase

Hey everyone

So things are going well. Conference was cool and it was a really nice break from the normal routine. I really liked the talk President Uchtdorf gave about enjoying the ride and listening to a song to enjoy it not to hear the end. It made me think of my mission and how I should try to enjoy every second of it and not just think about the future. Elder Bednar and Holland's talks were good too. They were very similar to the two recent MTC devotionals they gave.

Oh yeah, Pasto just got Mountain Dew for the first time. There are posters of it everywhere. It's hilarious. So of course, I've already drank like four in the past three days. That and Oreos are the only things I recognize that you can basically buy anywhere.

A kid in the ward just left for Spain on his mission and is in the Bogotá MTC. We met some of his friends at his family night farewell and now four of them want to be baptized and have set baptismal dates. We had a pretty good week two weeks ago. As of now, we have 13 baptisms scheduled for the 27th. That would be huge if it actually happens, but most likely at least half won't make it. And also, our area is being cut down in the following weeks so some of the baptisms won’t technically count as ours (but I will still count them... hah!)

Oh yeah, and when you guys do send packages, music is appreciated... like the soundtracks or whatever really.

To answer some of the questions Elder I. is from Huancayo, Peru. His parents and family converted when he was six. He is the youngest and has like five sisters and a brother or something like that. He is the first to serve outside of Peru. He is really good with computers and is really chill. I'm really lucky to have him as a companion. The other new gringo in my group, who was in my district in Bogotá, is having problems with his comp, so I'm pretty lucky.

As far as the mission affecting me, I think it's helping put things in perspective a bit and has helped me see the big picture more. I guess before I just didn't understand how real everything is with the gospel and stuff.

I don't think I've been here long enough to really see any huge changes in people's lives yet, but it is cool to see people accept the things you teach and frustrating when people flake out on stuff (which happens 90 percent of the time). We're still teaching the family Villacortez. One of the girls hugged me and didn't know about the rules (physical contact with the opposite sex). It was awkward...hah! Also, fun fact: apparently it's normal for women to nurse their kids in public and in front of people. It's always interesting to see the reactions when people open the door and they are doing that... haha!.

Entonces todo esta bien aquí, sin embargo todavía no entiendo la gente. Si yo hubiera estudiaso más en escuela, tal vez entendería mejor. Pero no estoy preocupado sé que estas cosas vienen con tiempo. Sé que este es el unico lugar en el mundo donde debo estar. Que estén bien. 

Chao

Hey everyone

So we had another baptism Saturday. She is 12 and her name is Gabriela. It was pretty cool.

As a zone we did really well this week. For the month we averaged 4 baptisms per companionship.

And yeah, I do like the when you guys send pics with the emails. I printed out some and showed them to the people down here.

The volcano basically looks like a mountain. It does make me uncomfortable sometimes but I usually don't think about it.

For the most part, things have really been the same. Elder I. and I are always busy with investigators and finding new people to teach.

Oh yeah, so yesterday we were knocking doors and we found a door that had a sign above it that said, "Esta familia es cristiana, la casa está abierta para cualquier persona que quiera conversar acerca de nuestro señor Jesus."

translation: This family is Christian. The house is open for anyone who wants to converse about our Lord Jesus.

So, of course, we knocked the door and some guy answered and Elder I. said "Hello, we came because of the sign. We'd like to talk with you about Jesus." And, of course, the guy made up some excuse that he already knew of Christ or something and didn't want to talk to us. I thought it was kinda ironic... haha.

So anyway, let me know what you guys want to know and I look forward to hearing from you the next Monday. Later

Entonces entiendo un poco mas cada día pero todavía es difícil. Me dijeron que los primeros meses son lo mas difíciles y sé que eso es verdadero. Pero es bueno que yo haya tenido clases antes porque muchos de los misoneros que empezaron el misión conmigo hablan peor y sé que podría ser más difícil para mi. Sé que no hay otro lugar en el mundo donde debo estar. Me encanta las personas aunque no las entiendo. Me alegro que todo esté bien allí. Hasta el próximo lunes.

Elder Chase