June Already

¡Hola!

The picture was actually all of the new missionaries that came in on Monday, so the one in blue was not my companion, but he is in my zone.  His name is Elder Diaz, he's from The Dominican Republic, and actually speaks English pretty well.  My companion is named Elder Tadeo.  He is from San Diego, but his parents are from Mexico so he speaks English and Spanish fluently.  He is the district leader here, and when we went to a meeting with the zone leaders, they said that it probably means I will be some kind of leader in my mission, because both of their trainers had been district leaders as well.

Mexico is different from anything I've ever experienced.  The scariest thing is the roads.  I've only feared for my life when I was in some kind of vehicle on the roads.  Everyone drives when they want, as fast as they want, and sometimes even in the other lanes of traffic.  Yet surprisingly I haven't seen a single accident here.  Oh, and because the sidewalks are usually covered in piles of dirt, we usually walk in the streets where ever we are going.  And to cross the street you say a prayer and choose to go in front of a car you believe will slow down.

My area is called Tlahuac, it's about a half hour outside of Mexico City.  The people here are nice, but at times I have a Best Two Years moment: that's not the language they taught me in the MTC.  These usually happen the second someone asks me a question.  I can be following a conversation okay up to that point, but the second I need to answer a question Spanish becomes a foreign language again.  Still, I've only been here a week, so I'm not extremely concerned yet.  And it is nice having a companion that can translate for me.  We live above a family of members, and the mother, Margarita, has made it her mission in life to make sure we never go hungry.  And so far the food here hasn't bothered my stomach as much as the food in the MTC.  I'm sure that will change, but until then it's a nice change of pace.  And the food is different then what I was expecting.  I'll put it this way, we've had potatoes more than rice and beans.  There are tortillas every meal, but it's like putting bread on the table, they are just there if you want them.  The thing we have had the most is soup, and Elder Tadeo said that's normal here.  But the food has had a good deal of variety, so I think I'll be okay.

The people here are very receptive to the gospel, and it's nice to pretty much always have appointments to teach.  It's incredible seeing people come to an understanding of gospel truths, and I love being a part of that, even if it's not a big part right now.  I hope that feeling will continue to drive me to do all that I can.

I glad I've got so much support from all of you.  They say that whenever you nametag is sitting crooked it means someone is missing you, and Elder Tadeo has to fix mine a few times a day, so I guess I've got a lot of people thinking about me, and praying for me.  I want you to know I appreciate every one of you, and I feel the support I am receiving.  Keep it up and I'm sure these two years will fly by faster than I can believe.  I can't believe I've been here a week, so I'm sure two years will sneak up on me.  I love you all and appreciate all the help you give me.

Love,

Elder Samuel Long