Baptisms and a Wedding

So I got something that I will start using to help with my weekly emails. I guess I should explain exactly what that is. I guess I´ll start with a little story. So it all happened this Tuesday. It was going on like any other Tuesday, We were putting up our numbers and the names and dates and stuff of that sort, when all of the sudden I hear in a German sounding Spanish, "Feliz Navidad" and packages appeared. I guess it´s one of the blessings of being in Managua, the fact that I can get packages a lot faster than those people in other cities. So I got this small yellow package, and it was a tie, but Elder Lee (one of the senior missionaries) said that they have another package for me. So I got that and inside was this thing that I can write every day on and upload it to the computer on P'day. So I guess these emails will be a bit longer. Anyways that´s how this story went. As for the rest of Tuesday, we got back to Reparto Schick and after a long lunch break we went to work. What was really cool is today we found 9 new investigators. Which is a whole lot more than our usual 0-2 investigators every day, so I really enjoyed that. When we got back to our apartment tonight, Elder Lopez was looking through some of his stuff in a suitcase he left open on the ground, and found a litter of baby rats! Not a very friendly surprise and I´m so glad it didn't happen to me!

Wednesday: Today we had Divisiones (or exchanges for you cheles). Or when I have a different companion for the day for those who don´t know. We did that so the District Leader could do interviews for baptism, for I and A (two investigators who will be baptized by the time you all read this). I had a good time with Elder Menezes in his area, and had really good chimichangas. Though they called them tacos. I held a pigeon and worked hard. I learned from Elder Menezes that he walks a lot faster with me than with Elder Najera, so I realized that I didn´t have to be walking so fast, and just because he´s skinny doesn´t mean he like running everywhere. Also we found out that there will be a Hurricane on Friday, so I hope that I am able to write to you all Monday after it happens, and hope it doesn´t interfere with our baptisms. Our Mission President sent out a message for all of the missionaries that we need to purchase a week supply of food on Friday, so yeah. I hope it doesn´t feel too bad.

Thursday: Today was my one month anniversary in Nicaragua! So that´s really cool. We finished up the exchanges, and I had a good time with Elder Menezes. I got cake today. I don´t know why they had it, but it said in Spanish Congratulations, and then a word that if they are serious on what it means...I don´t want to write it here. Children might read it. We had a small earthquake around lunch time, so while sitting down I felt the earth move, it wasn´t bad, and didn´t phase me but all the natives asked about it and how scared I was. 

Friday: So this morning we went shopping for our week´s supply of food, because of the Hurricane. So my week´s supply consists of a large bag of cereal, 3 milk baggies (milk comes in bags here) and 3 litres of Juice. So I´m prepared. If worse comes to worse I have Elder Lopez and he has plenty of meat on his bones.  Anyways so today was cool because we got 3 people on date for baptism, so I believe that puts our total up to around 11, but I want to get that number up to at least 15 before Elder Lopez leaves. We did more preparation for the baptisms, and the wedding tomorrow, and to my great astonishment, I ate more beans and rice today.

Saturday - Wedding Day! Okay so this morning bright and early we went to the church to pick up pants big enough for Jimy el Guardo. Like honestly that´s what he is called, he even calls himself that over the phone. I kinda like it. It´s like saying Fat Mike or Robert the Fatty. Anyways after that and giving the pants to him, we went back to the church and helped set up more to finalize the decorations. I actually liked how it turned out. Elder Lopez and I chilled a lot there. Then after that we had our normal lunch, then the Church again. Spent some time with the Bishop (Obispo for all of you Spanish speakers). Then went to get all of our people and bring stuff to the boda. After yet even more preparation and waiting (I don´t mind waiting, I really enjoy time to my thoughts, or just relaxing and not having anything to do. I know some people it drives them crazy, but I enjoy it). Then the wedding started, they got married, then right afterward we had the baptisms. Okay so Jimmy got married to his Wife, and then Baptized his wife and their son. Then we had the baptism for our Investigator A also. After that was like a 2.5 hour party and celebration for the wedding, and then after most everyone left another hour of cleaning up. It was all good and I had fun. I showed the natives the Vogt "go to" dance move AKA The White Man´s Overbite. All in all I really enjoyed today, it was both really packed, but also laid back. I guess not laid back, but just different, a change of pace, so I enjoyed it. On a side note....Elder Lopez´s and my backpacks are locked in the bishop´s office. We left them in there while getting people and doing everything, and the bishop left without us getting them out...so there is always tomorrow. Oh and Elder Lopez is kinda salty right now. More or less for this wedding we helped them out financially. We each gave them around 2000 cordobas, or in dollars, around 75 dollars each. )We only get 2800 every 15 days, and that´s for everything, but the rent. Food, anything we might need, paying for our laundry, everything. So we each gave like 12 days of our entire living expenses= Together we paid for over half of the wedding, I´m not complaining here, it´s just what happened. Though I kinda wish I could have given a little less...Since I can buy a nice tablet here for like 1800 cordobas at their version of Walmart. So if I save here and there. Poof, After Mission regalo. But anyways back on track, elder Lopez is salty. He is salty because Jimmy had 6 3 liter bottles of Coke left, and Lopez wanted one. He doesn´t have one right now. So he used some choice words when talking about it to me in our casa.

Sunday: It is Sunday today. So in other words another pretty lazy day with elder Lopez. I like but don´t like days like this at the same time. But most of the day was with Pidul (our lunch guy) and then a bit at the church again later. There are certain things from today that I wrote in my journal, but it can wait for 2 years to be known. Anyways just chilling with Elder Lopez right now before bed.   

Now it´s time for random things. Since most of the natives have a hard time with the V sound in Vogt, I get called a lot of different things. Mostly Bo,But I get some different ones, like Bosh, or Bogt, sometimes Vogt, but I think my favorite one sounds pretty similar to Bones. The guys who says this also knows my other names, so he calls me Seth Bones. Kinda weird, but It´s easier to tell he´s talking to me than Bo. 

I am finally able to feel cold!!!!! After one month is what I have come to know as ¨Normal Temperature¨ (I got a picture of snow at our house from my Parents...so yeah...normal) I can finally feel cold. So every night I sleep with a fan on me, and the past 2 nights I´ve felt like actually cold while I sleep, even with the thin sheet that covers me. It is one of the best feelings out there. I love it so much. But then again it sucks. Because in the Morning with our bucket showers, the water always feels too cold! So some days I´m all like "I wish I could skip this today, I don´t want to be startled awake by the cold" or "Maybe if I do a little at a time it won´t be so bad"....Others I´m all for it. I just pour it on. This reminds me, while on Divisiones the apartment of elder Menezes and Najera the times they have running water are the times we are awake in their apartment whereas here (in my regular apartment) it´s always an hour before we get up, and an hour before we return to our casa. So with them I was able to take an actual shower. It felt so good. Man I miss running water!

                  

I usually don´t have breakfast here, just because I don´t feel hungry, so we´ll see if this changes anything. On the bright side, If we are able to have other meals with members still, I have like a month´s supply of cereal at the rate I´d eat it! It can last me to Christmas, I could be eating cereal while skyping my family on Christmas, What could go wrong?

So on Saturday with the wedding, we didn´t have a key to the baptismal font, but there is a glass divider in another room with space at the top, so we were standing on chairs trying to unlock the door with mops (the handle part) by turning the little nub that unlocks it. So we tried for like 15 minutes and couldn´t so we pushed a stack of 5 chairs to the glass and jumped in. It´s a good 10 feet from the top of the glass divider to the bottom of the font. But let´s just say, no one died, so it all worked out in the end. 

So one thing I was thinking before coming on my Mission was "I hope I don´t have too many companions who are slobs" but after being here for a month it´s strange how much different things are just culturally, like here you just throw trash on the ground. Back in the states if someone gave me something with a wrapper I wouldn´t dream of just throwing the wrapper on the ground right in front of their face, but here it´s totally cool, and your trash can go pretty much wherever. Like in our appartment we have a corner just full of trash that we need to sweep out of here. So talking with other missionaries who are about to go home, they´ve all said it´s a habit they´re gonna have to break and get used to using trash cans again. (don´t worry we have a trash can, our pile is more of like bottles and chip bags). And everything is so dirty here in the sense that there is dirt everywhere, like I don´t know how it gets where it does, we have to wipe down the church pews every week wiping just dirt off of them, and the church is a closed building. So cleanliness is a whole different thing here.  

- Elder Vogt

   

Fun Facts for the Week

* I've only seen 1 roach this month in Managua, oh and 2 mice. But I see lizards all of the time and even in our apartment on the walls. In the words of Ben Harper:

My choice is what I choose to do

and if I'm causing no harm it shouldn't bother you.

Your choice is who you choose to be

and if you causin' no harm then you're alright with me 

I feel the same about the lizards.

Though I saw one weird bug on my toothpaste tube....I used soooo sooo much air freshener on that sucker!

* Most days we have study time - both companion and personal. I'm supposed to do language study (in the mornings) but usually don't have the time so I usually incorporate it throughout the day.

 

* I am in the Reparto Schick ward, and area. We meet at 8 in the morning, so we get up at 5:30am on Sundays, to bring investigators and such.

  

* Most weeks we have about 120 people in attendance at church. This week for Stake Conference only about 70 of our ward members made it (we had to take a bus to the Conference vs just walk so I think that is why the discrepancy in numbers). But the Conference was well attended and the church was packed.

* Lopez and I are able to talk a lot more (since we are able to with my increased Spanish) and he is teaching me more. We joke around a lot with P and J, the 2 members who usually do stuff with us, one knows English, the other is our lunch guy. So it's good fun.

* I'm wishing I had more time with Lopez here. It's kind of a scary prospect in 2 weeks that I will have to teach a new person where everyone lives, what is everyone's state, and how to get everywhere. I have been taught stuff like our dinner schedule every week, and where to go for different things. So I have been asking a lot more questions about this stuff lately.

* I think my spiritual experience for the week would have to be Stake Conference, or some of or lessons with our investigator A. I really like him, he (I think) is what they're talking about when you hear someone mention a " Golden Investigator". 

*  I haven't had to give a talk in church yet, but I have had to pass the sacrament, and say the closing prayer

* We walk around a whole lot, miles usually every day! So we don't exercise traditionally in the mornings. But we do usually play sports with other Elders on Pdays.

* We usually see our Wards Bishop at least once a week. We saw him on the road today, he is a taxi driver. They have tons and tons of taxis around here. But he didn't pull over and kick his passenger out to give us a free ride sadly.... lol

* I can't roll my "R's". I can somewhat imitate it with a guttural sound made in the back of my throat, but I can't otherwise. It sounds really weird when I do it in Spanish, so I don't usually.

* I translate lyrics for the natives here sometimes. I feel I can translate decently enough

* I know enough Spanish to get by. I still need to be able to recall what to say, and understand when people are talking and what they are saying. It feels like my learning is super slow, but it's probably faster than most people in the world.

*  I have tons of sugar everyday. We don't really have sugar (in like candy) very much. Or desserts. but I get lots of sugar from the soda. It's everywhere, and we have it all the time. Most of the meals, we have either Soda or Juice, and at least 2 or 3 times a day at people's houses. I wonder how much weight I'd lose If I went off of it! Or I could just get a parasite. I hear they work really fast.

* I just can't wait for the 24th (of November) because that's my 1 month mark here in Nicaragua!

More Random Happenings from Nicaragua

I guess some highlights of this week were. I saw a pig. But not just any ordinary pig. This pig was massive!!! It was probably a good 7 or 8 feet long, and easily weighed at least 700 pounds. I took a picture of it, but in the picture it looks tiny.....So yeah. Anyways with that one of the members took a photo of my photos and made them into a meme. So I took a photo of his photo with words of my photo.

Then Later in the week since Elder López's sister is going to the Nicaragua South Mission, and she arrived in country this week, and since Elder Lopez goes home in 2 weeks, we got permission from the mission president to go see her at their Stake Center. So that was fun we got to see here, and I also met an Elder Black who is from my stake back home in Montana. So I have met all the Nicaraguan Elders from my stake (Elder Lund is in the North Mission with me and is also currently serving in Managua so I see him weekly). So that was really sweet. 

Then these past 2 days have been Stake Conference here. So most of our time this week other than lessons has been giving members and investigators invitations to stake conference, and reminding them, and bringing them. It's a big undertaking. But I enjoyed it and had a good time. Yesterday our Mission President and his wife spoke in the Conference, so it was cool to see them and talk to them again. 

Anyways, a couple more random things, A drunk guy one night came up to me and started talking, speaking really good English for a drunk Nicaraguan. But said many things, like he wants our gospel, he loves me, he wants my life, and he wants my pants. He wanted me to take off my pants and give them to him. So naturally I said I needed my pants, and he left.

And this morning while waiting for the other missionaries to arrive to the church for Soccer, we were waiting (I was getting a hair cut, but the place was closed until 9 in the morning, so we were a bit early to the church, at like 7:45) But he gave me like a 1 hour long speech no joke. Again in English. About many many many many things. But in it he said that the doctors said the drugs like cocaine and meth messed with his organs, but through the glory of Jesus he was healed. Something was a bit off about him, but he was nice and friendly enough. 

Anyways those are just a couple things that happen in my life here.

 

Elder Vogt

 

Additional Thoughts for Week 3

* I talk in every lesson, I teach parts, and testify of others. But Elder Lopez does most of the teaching at this point.

* I am still eating primarily beans, rice and bananas - but we have varieties every once in a while. Some of the food is good, others I don't like so much. But I discovered I had a new talent in the MTC. I can swallow food whole. So if there is something I don't like or can't stomach. I swallow it whole as fast as I can. (I learned by having a contest with elder Simpson who could eat a pack of M&Ms the fastest. I could swallow the whole pack (single serving) instantly

* We have a baptism set for Saturday and several more scheduled for 2 weeks

* My companion/trainer leaves to go back home to Honduras in 3 weeks so I will be getting a new companion on December 6th

* Typically we spend most mornings in the apartment doing companion study and personal study. We go outside to get lunch and then leave straight from lunch to our appointments. We are out from 1-9pm.

* We teach the Gospel Doctrine class at church on Sundays (Lopez does most of the teaching for this)

* We do door-to-door tracting each day but most of our teaching time are referrals or set appointments

* It rains most days but it's not bad, even just walking in downpours isn't bad. Since we are used to always being wet. So it's a blessing.

* The people here are all really friendly and most are willing to listen, but not all are interested.

* I hear it's supposed to snow in Montana this week - Lucky!!!!!!!!!!!!! I want snow so much 

* Once I get back home, everything is going to seem so luxurious in the states, I'll be so grateful for everything. Even small things we don't think about like running water always available. We only have running water for 1 hour in the mornings. We have a large tub that we put under the shower and fill it up and usually have bucket showers with that. But probably a 75 gallon drum. So we fill that up and use that to flush too. It's cold water and we shower in the morning. But I kinda wish it was more room temperature. It's not bad though. 

*  Everyone here can make do with so little, and still be so nice and friendly. So complaining about stuff like slow internet, or having to drive 15 minutes to get into a near town to be able to buy something seems ridiculous. We are so blessed with what we have!

* I feel safe here - and actually we have 3 layers of protection, bars over our door, a small front patio with bars, and a courtyard with bars. I feel safe, and even when walking out late at night in the dark I feel safe. I heard from one of the members, like 10 years ago this was a dangerous area with gangs and everything but now it's one of the safest in Managua (my particular neighborhood of Reparto Schick)

* It is so Super hot and humid, but it'll make me appreciate the cold even more.

* There are 10 zones in the Nicaragua North mission. Most of them are a city (except for  Managua and Chinedega - they each have 2 zones). Each zone has 2 or possibly 3 Districts. Ours has 2 districts, and my District has 8 Missionaries. So we do a zone meeting every week. I heard once a month, but it has been every week. So we meet up at the stake center and do a little instructional thing then report numbers to our District. Elder Najera, (Na hair a) is our District Leader and I like him a lot. His companion has been here 9 weeks - Elder Menezes and he's from Brazil.

* In our apartment we have a stove and a microwave (the stove gets plugged in) but if we are hungry we usually just buy something from the store right across the street. There are little shops everywhere.

* Today I tried Nicaraguan Ice cream. It's like shaved ice with various thick syrups. It was pretty good. So imagine like a slushie with a thicker syrup

* Something weird here in this country is even though most people have like 20 year old tvs, most of them (even the poor ones) have really nice sound systems.

* And most everyone here has a smart phone. So it's just different. Like they make less money here. I think it was like 4 dollars a day. But things are a whole lot cheaper. We went to a restaurant and I got a meal that would probably cost like 8 dollars in the states and it was only around 2.50 here. 

* They like to feed you a lot here. Like for the bean soup we've had twice it's served in like giant dog bowl sized bowls.

* I must be one of the tallest people in the entire country. I don't think I've seen anyone taller than me so far. Most people are about a head or so shorter than I am, but I am getting used to having to duck a whole lot, so I don't hit my head on their doors or barbed wire.

Week 3 and a Mass Exorcism

Okay week happenings. 

So more or less this week has been better than last week. It feels like hardly any time has passed since last Pday, but then again at the same time it has felt like a whole month. Just I guess time is skewed as a missionary.

I don't remember much from Tuesday or Wednesday, just that we probably did the same old normal schedule as we usually do. Though on Thursday was a meeting for all of the new missionaries in the mission. So we went to the other stake center in the other zone in Managua, and I got to see the other members from my District who went to Nicaragua also. So it was really good, and it helped lift my spirits a lot. It was great getting to see the others and speak English! 

Most of the time it has been just normal, we have been visiting people, and teaching the gospel, and today we helped get some stuff ready for a wedding in 2 weeks. 

And alright it's story time!

Okay so on like every other corner are churches. They usually are just 1 big room, and usually have a small stage, with a keyboard, drums, microphone, etc. So there is one across the street from J's house,  I heard a lot of yelling through the speakers, and talking from the crowd. So I looked, and saw most of them standing with their arms up and forward, swaying back and forth chanting/singing, while the preacher was yelling at them individually. So this goes on for a while. And he is yelling at them in a near death metal voice. I ask J what happened/is happening, and he said thery're doing exorcisms for all of the sins of the people in the crowd. And that he's yelling at them like saying"Repent! Repent of your sins! Do it right now and be saved!!!" Individually to everyone, it was really strange.

So I told J (he knows both Spanish and English) I'll give you 5 dollars if you walk right in there and yell "HALLELUJAH!!!" right there during the group exorcism/yelling/chanting/singing. And he busted up laughing. He didn't do it though.  But it would have been too perfect.

Anyways that happened last night. Just another day in the life of a missionary.

Elder Vogt

Week 2 in the Land Without Cold

Okay time for the second week here. 

Since the elections here are going on (they actually happened yesterday) this past week and this week we have to return to our apartments by 7:30 at night instead of the normal 9 or 9:30. So that was different but kind of nice. 

We spend the time like normal throughout the week, going and teaching lessons, visiting members, and less active people. So not much new going on here. On Friday I went on exchanges with an elder Menezes and went over to his area while Elder Najera came over here with elder López. 

Elder Menezes has been here for 2 months, and is from Brazil. 

So went over there with him, but it was actually nice, because we managed to have full on conversations. Since Spanish was neither of our first languages, it was really cool. So it helped a lot. Then Fast Sunday. It wasn't that hard for me, because here I really don't get hungry. People constantly want to feed me, but honesty having lunch I don't get hungry till lunch the next day. The hard part was no liquids. Since we drink so much water and Soda here. It was difficult. 

I guess for random things that have happened. I've been teaching my companion (from Hondurus) random English phrases like What's shakin' bacon. And things of that sort. And am trying to talk more. It's a bit hard because I sort of space out and my mind wanders. Since I don't know what's going on that's why my mind just sort of wanders. But then it makes it even harder to get what's happening. So yeah. 

But I am starting to get used to the heat and humidity, so that's a plus. I just need to remember that the lord has a plan for each of us, and even though this has probably been the most difficult thing that I've had to do, many others have been able to do it to, and I can too with His help.

-Elder Vogt (or "Boat" as they pronounce it here)