WEEK 12 - Photos

The photos below include Elder Baller's own captions (from a voice recording). Enjoy!

That's our church, from the back. The basketball court that's outside, there's one inside too. It's huge. It's the stake center.

Me, one morning with my breakfast. Kitos. They're like puffs that are spicy. That's my breakfast. Someone gave that to us. Someone just gifted it, which happens quite often.

Same with this -- also a gift. That is juice in a bag. This was actually P-day. I think this is P-day. I don't remember. Yeah, this is P-day because I never wear a shirt, usually just a garment top. So, that's a bag of juice. That's how it is. There's juice like that that's really sweet--that one. And then there's orange juice. Water comes in bags like that. Water in a bag like that size is 1 lempira. And there is one twice as big that is 2 lempiras. Basically the only good water is Agua el Sul. Theirs is basically all the same. But the water in the bag literally tastes like a diaper. It's nasty. They're all clean, they just taste gross. So, if we can, we try to get to get Agua el Sul. But there's like La Tigra, which is nasty. 

This is the family -- the daughter in the middle, the mom, the dad and one of their sons. They have another daughter, another son and another daughter that are all older. They have a son who is like 12, a daughter that's like 18, and a daughter that's like 23. And in the back, there's one of the hermanas that we work with. She looks really sad cause she was sick. But she's okay.

Us with the same family. In the picture, way in the back, there's a girl with pink pants. Behind her, there's a guy and his wife is gringa. She's from the states and speaks English and her husband speaks English. And their son, who's a tiny little son, speaks a little bit of English. 

This was our other investigator who was baptized the same day. She's 19, almost 20. It was the only jumper we had. So it's a little big.

This is our board of English phrases. Ignore the "she is temptation." Nothing else.

Me, with a Honduras shirt that I bought.

Same. If you notice in the bottom left corner, our trash pile is a nightmare. This was on the 20th, which was Sunday. And all that stuff is still there, plus more. The pile's just bigger now. In the back, there's a table. That's my table. That's my table of stuff.

Oh boy. Oh boy. This is my agenda. Because the first agenda that I got didn't have week 5 in it. Every agenda has six weeks and you get a new one every change (transfer). Mine didn't have week 5. So this week, I had no agenda. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, I used three pages that I had left from the CCM. But after that, I had nothing. So I made this lovely work of art, which as you can see, I made on Friday. Our goals, part of our plan, because I thought I was going to be going on divisions, so I didn't write down part of our plan. And you can also see some lempiras - 100, seems like a lot I know, but it's actually like five dollars. And then directly behind my agenda you can see my breakfast, which was bread with honey on it. And if you look to the very back, right corner, there's a bowl with corn flakes in it. Well, not corn flakes, but it's called Multi Cereal. It's got corn flakes, raisins, all this stuff. And ants. Dead ants. Because the first time I opened the bag, I didn't close it tight enough. And the next time I opened it, I closed it really good and they all died inside. And I had no milk, and so I was eating it without milk.

Welcome to my world. Baleades. We made everything on the plate. We made the tortillas. The easiest way to describe this, is that you make masa, and you make it into balls and stretch it out, and then fry it a little bit. It's just a tortilla. And then the brown stuff is beans. Also on top of the plate is beans. And then obviously eggs. And then that while stuff is mate kea (sp?). It's basically the best thing I've ever had. As you can tell, I kind of like it. I don't even know how to describe it. It's kind of like sour cream, but less sour. It's more sweet. It's incredible. I'm going to miss it so much. And I don't know how to make it. I know how to start it, but I don't know how to finish it. And then on top, we have a little bit of extra beans and eggs. That's my plate that I always use. Top right, is my filtration bottle, which is awesome. It will turn Coke into water. And the filter lasts a year, and I have another filter. 

WEEK 12 - Q&A (Guest Edition)

This week, I asked for suggestions for questions on Aidan's and my FB and Instagram pages. We got some awesome questions! Thanks so much, friends! I will be using the questions I got for the next several weeks. Here are the first five. Enjoy!

1. Lindsay Storrs - What is your advice for those preparing for their missions? And bonus question: Who was your favorite Sunday School teacher? :)

My very very best piece of advice for people preparing for missions is to get in the habit of praying and studying every day. Basically know as much of the scriptures as you can and become and expert of the scriptures. Bonus: I think the answer is pretty clear.

2. Tim Provost - What is your funniest rejection story?

This one guy, in the nicest house in the whole neighborhood, when we knocked on his door, he opened the door, there is a second door that is about 10 feet away that we were standing at. He stayed inside his house and said, "What do you want? You are thieves. You are infesting my country." Pretty entertaining.

3. Aunt Karen - What were you most grateful for this week?

I was most grateful for the primary kids in our ward, they gave a wonderful program and showed me that you don't have to be old to be a spiritual giant.

4. Rikke Kotter - If you could have one anything shipped to you from back home for just a day, what would you want? No you can't say your Mom, you can't ship people silly.

I would want a meal from Zupas. Easily.

5. Loni Mitchell- What has been the most surprising thing about your mission and the hardest part of serving there?

The most surprising thing has been that basically everyone lets us in, like everyone. We have really only been turned away like three times. But with that, the hardest part is that everyone here is Catholic and they "like" their church too much to leave it.

6. Andrew - Who has had the biggest influence on your life?

The people that have had the biggest influence on me. My parents -- the examples they have been for me and the things they have taught me. Umm you, the example you have been, the things I have learned from you, and the experience of having something so close to me really has had an influence on me.

WEEK 12 - Hello Everyone

Tuesday
Tuesday we went to Urrutia and talked with Eidy. It is awesome now that she is a member and that we are working with her family.

Wednesday
Wednesday we worked with Carlos in our ward. He is 18 as well. He is preparing for the mission so we are helping him. We first went and chopped the weeds on the side of an investigator's house, which was lovely, considering my hands were already destroyed before we went. After that we went to visit and investigator, but she wasn't there, so we ended up teaching these other hermanas and one of them is super interested. After that we went and taught a new investigator that was a reference from the bishop's wife. He is great.

Thursday
Thursday we had a district meeting. After that we went to Arauli, and basically weren't able to do much. The work there is really hard, because it is so far away and there is a Catholic church there. The people only go to that church because it is easy. We went to eat at a member's house, a little grandma. While we were walking there, I had a prompting that we should share a scripture with her, D&C 24:7-8. And I shared it with her and talked about it a little. She ended up really needing that scripture, she was having a hard time with something and it helped her. And she told basically the whole ward about me. Gossip.

Friday
Friday we went to San Marcos and only taught only lady cause that was all the time we had, and then we went to Urrutia. We might be forming a branch there, which would be awesome, cause the people there struggle to get to the church.

Saturday
We worked with Carlos again. We taught a couple people and then it started to rain. And boy did it rain. We were soaked. We taught Kimberly. She knew the entire Joseph Smith story. Dates and everything. Like all of it. First Vision to the organization of the church. We also taught the reference of the bishop's wife, Alejandro, again. And he told us that he really wants to be baptized, so he has a date for the 10th. His son as well.

Sunday
Sunday was the primary program, and it was magnifecent. The kids were awesome. So spiritual.

That's basically all I've got for this week. Les quiero mucho. Les extraño mucho.

Elder Baller

WEEK 11 - Q&A

1. Does Danli have fast food restaurants? Have you eaten in any?

Yeah it does. More like sit-down restaurants. But there are also fried chicken places everywhere. We haven't yet.

2. What is something about Honduras that is different from what you expected?

It is super super super dirty. Like when you finish your food, you just throw the garbage one the side of the road.

3. What do people think of Americans in Danli?

They love them. Everyone wants to talk to me. Everyone one says hi, just because I'm a gringo.

4. What do people in Danli do for a living?

Tons of people work at the tobacco factories, there are like five. That or they sell stuff on the streets.

5. How often do you do exchanges?

I have only done them twice, but one was for baptismal interviews.

WEEK 11 - Whatever Week This is: Baptisms

This week was AWESOME, basically the whole week we focused mainly on preparing Eidy and Luz for their baptisms.

Tuesday
I woke up on Tuesday feeling super sick to my stomach and that has basically plagued me all week, but I feel mostly better now. Basically the things to note from Tuesday were our visits to Luz and Eidy where we finished up teaching the last couple things we needed to teach.

Wednesday
Wednesday we went in the morning to finish chopping the "backyard" of an investigators house. It was hot. But I was priviledged enough to get the longer machete this time. So I wasn't completely dead by the end, I also chopped down a tree with the machete (new experience). After that we went to visit Luz and Eidy again, this time for the pre-interviews. They were both good, but we gave them each a little bit to study for Friday. At night we went and visited Ingrid, she is a
lawyer and friends with the bishop, cause he is a lawyer as well. She basically listens and understands everything we teach her, including the three kingdoms of glory, using D&C.

Thursday
Thursday we had a district meeting. Because our district is us and 6 Hermanas, and Elder Alarcon is the DL, I usually end up being the only Elder when we play games. Which is always super fun. We played Scripture Jeopardy. After that we went to met with another niña, Kimberly. She has tons and tons of questions, and she is really smart.

Friday
Friday was really good, I ended up going on exchanges with our ZL, Elder Smith, to do the interviews. He knew both of the investigators and said he was thrilled for both of them. He said that he was surprised that Eidy had accepted us, because whenever he went before, she would hide from the missionaries, the Lord truly has touched her heart. We were also nervous for Luz's interview cause she is a little timid, but Elder Smith said it was one of the best interviews he has
ever had with a child. She knew everything.

Saturday
Saturday morning we went and cleaned the font for the baptisms. It was really fun to get back into cleaning, just like the old days. After that we went and worked for a little while and then had the baptisms. It was amazing. I am so happy for both of them.

Sunday
Sunday both of them got confirmed during Sacrament meeting. It was so awesome. I am so grateful to be here. After that we went to visit Ingrid again, she again listened to everything, understood everything, and we talked about baptism. She was a little hesitant but she said that if she receives an answer she is going to be baptized.

Great week! Love you all!
Elder Baller

WEEK 10 - Photos

Elder Baller has been sending photos every week the last few weeks and we LOVE it! Looks like this week, the theme was food. :)

I requested an exterior photo of his house... what a good boy. :)

I'm SHOCKED he's drinking Coke. He's not a soda fan. I guess it might be one of the only options. The tiny little square thing on the book is a speaker. I sent it with the iPod and he said he loves listening to the church music on it. I also loaded it with a Christmas playlist for when the time comes.

Not sure why they are in their G's, but whatever. LOL Elder Baller LOVES Elder Alarcon.

Aidan has always been a great cook... and loves to experiment with new recipes. I'm so glad this is one area I didn't need to worry about with him on his mission. He'll eat well for sure. This looks like it could be a breakfast at home.

Oh I LOVE this boy! (And again... why the G's...)

Three grilled cheese sandwiches...at one sitting... his appetite hasn't changed apparently.

LOVE HIM

WEEK 10 - Q&A

1. What was the funniest thing that happened this week?

We burned a cockroach in our house. That was awesome.

2. Are you tired of the rain yet?

Nope, I love it. It's insane here.

3. Tell me your favorite things about your companion. (What is his first name btw)

He is a great trainer, he knows a lot and knows how to handle like every situation. Julio Daniel Alarcon Agustin.

4. How often do you see the other missionaries in your zone?

Every Thursday

5. Will you go to the mission home every six weeks for changes? How do you know if you are being transferred?

I am not sure how that works, I think you only go if you are being transferred. The ZL's will tell us if we need to go the changes meeting.

WEEK 10 - Week ummmmm can't remember

Tuesday
Tuesday was my cumplemes, 2 months in the mission! We contacted our colonia in the morning, we ended up finding some kids, their stepdad is a return missionary, and the sons name is Elder. Coincidence? I think not. For lunch we went to a members house, it was really good, except for the giant slices of cucumber and tomato soaked in lemon juice. Wow. After that we went to Urrutia, we taught Luz, her baptism is on Saturday. We are a little nervous for the interview cause she is timid and doesn't like answering questions. But she will be prepared. Then we went and taught Heidy, her baptism is also on Saturday. SO excited for them. In the evening we taught Katherin, and I didn't really say much but at the end I bore my testimony. I feel like it was good. I just opened my mouth and it was filled.

Wednesday
We went to an investigators house in the work to chop part of his backyard. It was great, except for somehow the tallest person in this country (me) ended up with the smallest machete. LOL. We went to Arauli, with very little success. The work is hard up there cause there are two churches that aren't us up there and it is easy for the people to go there instead of traveling down to Danli. During the middle of the day, someone was calling us from the office of the mission.. Because a lady from Costa Rica needs our help because her parents are from here and she wanted to get in contact with the Stake President. She is really good friends with the boxing girl from Meet the Mormons and so we told her to say hi to her. At night, we had an awesome lesson with Ingrid. She is super smart and super interested in everything we teach her.

Thursday
We had our district meeting in the morning. After that we went to a chinese? place here. I don't know why it is here. But it was way too much food for like 6 people and me and my companion shared it. After that we went to Quiquiske, we met some insane girls that had weird joke questions. Then we went to a members house, and her grandchildren LOVE me. We played a game with them where you write someone famous on a piece of paper and then trade it with someone and put it on your forehead. So you don't know who you are and you have to ask questions to figure it out. And one of her grandkids wrote down me as his famous person. And then when we left, he grabbed onto my leg and asked me to take him with us. LOL. After that we went to Katherin's. There was a giant tarantula on the wall, and they wanted us to kill it, so I sacrificed my shoe and Elder Alarcon killed it. After that we went to dinner at a member's house. She is a cute little grandma and her sister was there. Her sister when we were leaving asked us to pray for this kid that lives next to her because she was worried about him. Really showed me the faith that people have.

Friday
On Friday, we finished chopping the Hermana's house. Which was super fun. And hot. And hard. But really it was great. Service is one of my favorite things here. After that we had a cita and no time for lunch so we bought tortillas, avocado, and beans from a pulperia and made "baleadas". After that we went to prepare Luz and Heidy for their baptisms more. Quality. For dinner we went to a less active's. We helped her move the other day and so she asked us to dedicate her house, with permission from the bishop. It was a little different.

Saturday
We helped a lady set up for a baby shower in the morning. It was boring and service. After that we contacted and taught a few lessons. While we were walking, there were some teenagers that asked us about polygamy. Weird. Then we had another awesome lesson with Ingrid. And then the people across the street from us had a party until about 1 in the morning. Simply lovely.

Sunday
We had church. Hardly anyone came because this week is the independence of Honduras so all the schools do a march. It was empty. After Church we went to Urrutia to prepare Luz and Heidy for their baptisms.

I love you all so much. I miss you all so much!
Elder Baller

WEEK 9 - Photos

We were SO happy to get photos from Elder Baller for two weeks in a row! Read his letter first and then the pictures will make more sense. :)

WEEK 9 - Q&A

1. What was a spiritual experience this week?

Hearing a little kid pray in a home. It really showed me that you don't have to have tons of knowledge to have an amazing spirit.

2. What was something that happened that made you LOL this week?

Elder Alarcón chopping the Zavila.

3. Where/how and how often do you wash your clothes?

This lady in our Ward does it once a week.

4. Do you walk everywhere you go? How many miles would you estimate you walk in a day?

We mostly walk but we take taxis to our áreas that are far away. I would guess at least 5 but probably more.

5. What is something you wish you had done to prepare before your mission?

Gotten in the habit of studying everyday. Because I don't really have that great of studying habits, which is a struggle.

Bonus question. I asked him what they do when they get sick (which happens a lot there) and aren't at home.

We still work. Basically just hold it in, cause other peoples bathrooms aren't always safe. Drink some Pepto, say a prayer, and go to work. Feel free to share that one on the blog if you want.

WEEK 9 - Third Week in Danli

I decided this week to do a kind of day by day thing, so here we go.

MONDAY
Monday was really good. We played basketball at the church. Then we went to lunch at Comedor Totito, which is this restaurant run by a member family. We go there every P Day. They have the BEST carne asada. Then we went to IPF, which is where we have internet. After that we went to a "grocery store" called La Dispensa. It was chaos, but it was great. After that we went looking for a lady we contacted named Alejandra, but couldn't remember what house she lived in, so we guessed. There ending up being a girl there named Alejandra, she goes by Miselsy, that has basically taken all the missionary lessons, and really wants to be baptized... umm what... Inspiration or what. After that we went to dinner at a member's house. They didn't have much so they gave us bread with eggs, beans, and avocado on it.

TUESDAY
On Monday night when we planned, I wrote in my agenda for Tuesday, "Today is going to be a good day." I think the He tested me a little bit with that one, cause that was a hard day. But I made the most out of it. In the morning we went to the house of an abuelita, named Christina, in our Ward to chop some stuff. I had basically a hoe and Elder Alarcón had a machete. He ended up chopping her lemon and zavila, her two favorite plants. She actually ended up inviting us to dinner every Thursday night. LOL. After that we went to Arauli with Samuel, our líder misional. It was actually really good. His girlfriend didn't believe him that he was with the missionaries so we took a selfie with him. LOL.

WEDNESDAY
Wednesday was not super eventful. We taught Miselsy again, and at the end of the lesson, she was like "I want to give you a hug"... Umm I just stood there awkwardly and said, "Ummmm no puedo, lo siento." That was interesting. It rained. Hard. Like crazy. There was a river in the calle 30 seconds after it started raining. And all the lights in the city went out. Lovely.

THURSDAY
It rained. A lot. Again. Not much else happened. We were going to watch Meet the Mormons with investigators and less actives, but no one came.. so that was fun. We also had dinner with Hermana Christina. For some reason Elder Alarcón doesn't like tortillas but she told us we have to eat everything. So I ended up sneaking his tortillas because he wouldn't eat them. So I had 8.

FRIDAY
On Friday we went to Arauli again. It is super fun to go there cause we have to take a taxi to the bottom of the mountain and then take a little mototaxi up to the city. It is great. For lunch we made baleadas. Dang. I am making them for everyone reading this when I get back. And on the way back from Arauli, we took the bus. I was literally a foot taller than everyone else on the bus. No joke. I feel like giant here. It's awesome. And I also washed my towel in a pila. Which was different, cause we have a lady in our ward who washes our clothes.

SATURDAY
On Saturday we went to the Hermanas that we kinda share an área with. They are both super sick, and they have a ton of weeds in front and back of their house, so we thought that is what was causing it. So we chopped most of it down. It took three hours, and we still have more. Blister heaven. Pics to come, courtesy of my mother. Also spider, frog, and gecko heaven in the weeds. Splendid.

SUNDAY
Church was amazing. We finally had investigators at church. FIVE! Oh, we were so happy. So good. Also we fasted, which was easier than you might think. Just the lack of wáter was killer. Mentioning lack of wáter, we didn't have any to shower with. So we didn't shower. But we did go to San Angel to meet with one of our investigators, and she wasn't there but her sister in law was. And she is super awesome. She is basically ready to be baptized, she accepted everything we taught. The Lord Works in mysterious ways.

Love you all and miss you all so much.
Elder Baller