week of 10-28-13

Well, it seems the excitement comes in waves from Autlan!  Thank goodness!  I would be having a nervous breakdown by now if every week was like last week.  This week it looks like Elder Williams is celebrating birthdays, walking the streets for contacts and playing soccer with the youth!  Great things to build relationships.  The investigators are going really slow, so keep praying for Elder Williams and Barrera to get some inspiration and help to soften hearts.

Little Girl birthday!

 Two birthday for the price of one!  Got to love those!

Big Girl Birthday!

Boys will be boys especially playing soccer!

Look at those snuggly kittens!  Just makes you want to say... AWWWWW!

"My teaching schedule is usually teaching less actives until the later times of the afternoon.  We haven't had very many investigators to teach because they are all working until 8 at night, only are available some days out of the week, or our lessons fall through because we don't have a member with us.  Street contacting is going ok.  Still don't like doing it because in this small town everyone is working as they walk and can't stop, very catholic, or have screaming kids that wont let you get a word in edgewise (sp?).  It's very frustrating."

In his letter to Brennin, Elder Williams bore this testimony:
"I am glad that you know that God calls prophets.  God loves us so much to send us prophets.  I know that and I am glad to have a prophet on the earth today. "

To his grandfather:
"I am grateful that you are spending some time with my fam.  I am so grateful for the time that we have had to get along and have a good relation.  Thanks for being a great grandpa and I'm glad to still have you in my life."

Well, that is all for this week.  A short one after the craziness of last week!  Thanks for your support of Elder Williams!  Only 10 months left!!!!

weekly update 10-23-13

Once again we didn't get much of an email from Elder Williams the week before, but this week we have some excitement.  If that is what you want to call it!!!  It sounds like Elder Williams was trying to swing from the rafters and the rafters won!  It ended in a trip to the doctor with an almost broken/severed finger!  Way to go Elder Williams!

Yesterday was bittersweet because I had to talk in church and I also almost cut off my pinky.  Yeah you'll know what happened when you see the pics.   This is what happens when a fan is shorter than you thought and you raise your hands really fast.  Any of you remember Newsies?  I tried to be the guy who spins on the fan.....  Not true.  Just me checking my surroundings trying to be the comic relief of the missionaries....  This happened yesterday in the chapel after church was over.  whoopie for me.

SLICE...

DICE...

PUREE?

Nice bruising! 

Exciting food of Mexico????  A little taste of the local cuisine...

Elder Barrera making lasagna!

adding the finishing touches to a Mexitalian meal?

Pig's feet in Pozole!

Close up shot!

And last but not least... some sight seeing around Autlan...  We have all heard the saying, "Your home is your castle", but this is taking it a bit too far!!!!

I want a house just like this one!

Wow!  Now that is a castle!

Well, that is all this week from the wonderful world of Elder Williams!  See you next week!

combo weeks 10-7-13

Sorry I didn't update last week.  Our Ballroom team was having a benefit concert for a family that lost a mother to cancer and I was swamped getting that concert ready.  So, we have two weeks of news and some pics.  Last week we didn't get much because Elder Williams used his P-day to go up to Quadalajara to pick up a new companion.  Elder Williams has his first greenie!  He is now a trainer!  Oh, boy!  He is nervous because he really wants to do a good job!

From Elder Williams' letter 10-1-13:
Well here in Autlan I got some good news and bad news.  The bad news is that Elder Montaño is not my companion anymore.  The "good" news is that I am now a trainer......  I have now recieved my first "son"....  I'm freaking out.  I can't believe that I have been given this much resposibility....  I'm kinda feeling a bit inadequate...  I don't know if I have the right amount of experience to train another missionary.  I am definitely depending a LOT on the Lord now.  I just really need some encouragment from everyone.  I just feel very nervous about this whole thing.  His mission depends on how I do as his trainer.

Elder Barrera from Mexico City.  He is a recent convert of 18 months and is very homesick.  He is the only member of his family but they support him which is good news.  I'm kinda freaking out about having this responsibility.  I don't know how I got put here.   I just hope I can help him stay on the mission.  He is having family and mom withdrawals big time already and it's been 3 weeks since he left home.  I just don't want to fail.

Greenie and new Trainer!

Welcome to Autlan, Elder Barrera!

What a GREAT smile!

From Elder Williams' letter 10-7-13

Dear Daddy:

I am grateful for your advice and your confidence in me.  I am really nervous and he is supposedly really sick after this weekend.  Something hasn't agreed with his stomach and that makes him frustrated and causes his migrains.  I'm trying to find a way to help him not feel so down and sick but it's hard in a different language and not having many resources.  I'm just hoping I'm doing a good job. I really don't want him to have a bad first area and it's not starting off to great for him so far.

Have you seen the Mormon Message "Earthly Father, Heavenly Father"?  If not look it up.  It is amazing.  I love you and I miss you so.  See you in 11 months.  Oh and if I don't get to tell you on Friday, HAPPY BIRTHDAY OL' TIMER!!!!!!!  hahahaha jk.  I love you.

2 months left until I get to Skype you guys.  I think it would be cool too to Skype and have Omi and Opa there too.  I loved that part of Uchtdorf's talk.  I almost cried remembering my Omi and Opa.

I'm so grateful for your prayers, faith, confidence, and love that you send my way every day.  I really miss having that close and not across the country.  I can't wait for the day to have that once again all around me.  I love you so much and I hope that you are doing alright.

11 months.... Wow...  Oh and they are cutting the mission of everyone again another week so I could be coming home 25th of August....  AAAAHHHH!!!!!  CRAZY!!!!

What a great, humble missionary!  We love our Collin! And we might see him sooner!!!???

Week 9-23-13

WOW!!!  This week there was lots more news from Elder Williams!  He sent 7 emails with pictures and 7 videos!!!  It was really cool!  We spent our whole FHE night just enjoying the wonderful world of Elder Williams!  I didn't include everything he sent, but here are the highlights:

From Elder Williams' letter:
"We had divisions this week and I got to ride the bikes up the awful montains....  I don't know how they do it each day with those horrible bikes that don't change gears easily.

As for new investigators, we have a new referral of a YM.  He has invited his "GF" and she invited her aunt and cousin.  They have been to church and seem to enjoy it.  The only problem is that they live in a "pueblito" and we have to get permission to teach them there.  If we don't get it then we have to teach them in the house of her "BF".  We are still working on Juan but he just doesn't want to come to church......  UGH!!!!!  I don't know how to get these people to understand the importance of church more than what I've been teaching...  I have been starting to read PMG from cover to cover.  I have gotten some very good insight about the power and authority of my calling.  It is amazing to think that young men of 18 years can be trusted with such glorious power.  It makes me really want to show that it wasn't a mistake to give it to me.  We are really trying to find more and more families to teach because PMG says to search specifically for families to become eternal.  Roberto is just having a bunch of family problems.  His mom is JW (Jehovah witness) and his Gpa might have to get his leg cut off to save his life and that's why he didn't go to church yesterday....  oh boy...  We are trying to help him and his family become strong and together in the church."

From Autlan... we thought we had it bad after our one flash flood day...

It seems there is a ritual among missionaries that at their one year mark they get to burn one shirt.  They have a "shirt burning party"!  Oh, my.  Chris says he never knew anything about that and never did one, but all the other return elders he has talked to have all done it.  So here are some pics and a video of that special one year mark!

And the video to go with it!

Area General Authority, Elder Johnson toured the Quad mission and so Elder Williams and Elder Montano had to travel even further south to the coastal city of Manzanillo.  They might not be able to go to the beach, but they did get some relax time?

Hammock in the Zone Leaders house

Here is a video of the Manzanillo beach (that none of the Elders get to enjoy!!)

Just in case you are wondering if this was a fun trip or if they did any work, here is a picture from the mission blog that shows that Elder Williams can scripture chase.  He wasn't a high score on the test they had.  We will have to have him work on that!!

Then there was also the Mexican Independence Day celebration at the Branch.  It was actually on a Sunday, but the ward celebrated on the Saturday with a big Branch Party.  Here are some fun shots of missionaries enveloping the spirit of the country and people they serve!

Traditional Mexican dress up?

Elder Williams sporting a "true Mexican pose"?

VIVA MEXICO!!!!

Now we get to play dress up?  Elders donning the different types of Mexican sombreros!  Which one do you like Elder Williams in?  Leave a comment and vote and we will let him know which sombrero we like on him and he can buy it before he comes home!  :-)

Sombrero #1 - Viva Mexico in Straw

Sombrero #2 - Hat with brim

Sombrero #3 - Black sombrero

And also a video of the great Viva Mexico parade!

And we will leave you with this last picture....

Elders... you need to go home and SHAVE!!!!

Looks like great things are happening in Mexico!!!  Keep Juan and Roberto in your prayers.  And keep Elder Williams in your hearts!  Hopefully we will see a baptism soon!!!!

Week of 9-16-13

Well, this week was really short!!!  There seems to be promise of a longer one with pics and vids next week.

Looks like Mexico is getting the same kind of weather we are having here in Utah!

"We supposedly have a "hurricane" blowing through this part of Mexico and we got hit with a nice rainstorm last night and didn't stop until about 2 this afternoon.  It just started to drizzle again as we are here writing.  We are expecting a lot of rain this week.   Roberto is not progressing well.  I think he was more converted to Elder Vega than the church.  We are trying to change that."

"We have classes in Manzanillo every second tuesday of the month.  We also had a conference with Elder Johnson from our area 70 in Colima.  That was a long day.  We were on a bus or a shuttle for 8 hours on Thursday....  ugh.   The humidity in Manzanillo is deadly.  Even in a hammock sleeping I'm sweating....  YUCK!!!  I'll send you a bunch of videos and pics next week because at the computer place I'm at they don't have a free USB port. "

Well, that is all for now!  Keep Roberto in your prayers! 

Pray for Elder Williams!  See you next week!

On the DOWN HILL slope!!!

This week marks the 1 YEAR mark for Elder Williams!!!!  Can you believe it?????  We didn't get any shirt burning videos like he promised.  Maybe that is a good thing!  I did get some pictures from the Mexico blog when he was have Zone conference.  I didn't write last week because Elder Williams didn't write more than a few sentences because his companion still had things to get done on P-day and wouldn't let Collin spend much time on the computer.  We got more info this week...

Elder Montano, Elder Williams and the other two elders in the Autlan district.

Supposedly practicing a contact on a Taxi driver?  Can't tell if the driver is really feeling that spirit?

Zone conference 2013

Still working on Roberto to get baptized!  Keep him in your prayers!  He needs to get the courage to tell his boss that he needs the week ends off to go to church and to go to his own baptism.  They are also working on another man named Juan Adame.  "We had a member accompany us and he was amazing.  We are really grateful for that brother.  Juan is excited and is reading the BoM.  He didn't come to church but we are excited to work with him. He is really excited about the gospel" but the rule is that they have to attend church 5 times before they can be baptized!  Lots and lots of prayers are needed!

Beautiful Autlan!

 

Can't tell if he is pointing to the city or the clouds???

Happy Companions in a beautiful city!

"Our branch is going to have a party for the Mexican Independence Day.  It's Sunday but Saturday we get to yell "VIVA MEXICO!!!!"  Should be fun."

"The biggest problem here in Autlan is getting bored...  When there is nothing to do and the lessons fall through we can't knock doors to find people, we just have to try to find people at home and go back and forth to find them available.  We have to actualize the branch lists to see who still lives here, who died, who doesn't want anything to do with us, etc.  That has been the most tiring part of the work here.  That is the main focus of the mission is the less actives.  We are trying to get the people that are already members to stay active and then help us find others to teach and become active members.  It's rough and in our half of the area almost all the people don't live there anymore and no one knows where they went....  Tough...  "

Keep Elder Williams and the people of Autlan in your prayers.  This will be the first and final Halloween in Mexico for Elder Williams.  If you want to send him a package send it off in the next little while!  We can't wait to hear of his experiences with "Day of the Dead" in Mexico!

Love you all and thank you for your support!
Angela

Weekly letter 8-26-13

It sounds like another busy week for Elder Williams and Elder Montano.  As Elder Williams said, they went to the house of the investigators and baked the cake, lit the candles, sang happy birthday, blew out the candles and then smashed Elder Williams into the cake!  Oh, what fun!

20 Birthday Candles!

One face into the cake!

 

 

 

Hope you enjoy the video of this happy birthday song!  Looks like they had lots of fun! (At Elder Williams' expense)

Here is a look at Elder Montano: (sideways, sorry I can't get it to flip!)

And here is another one of their room mates...

A scorpion!!!!!!  And this one looks awfully small.  Doesn't that mean BAD POISON!?

We also found out today that there was one day Elder Williams actually got bit by a dog!:

"When I first got to Autlan I was in Manzanillo for Interviews.  We were walking with some other elders that we were staying with and a dog bit me!!!!  He barked and barked and barked and I just thought "don't look at him, don't show fear, just keep walking and he won't do anything"  NO!!!!  The dumb animal bit my leg.  It was pretty crazy and funny. "

(Elder Williams and Montano are Co-Senior Companions)  "Co-Sr. means that there is no difference in rank or leadership but I do the majority of the stuff like get the money to pay rent, phone calls, data, etc.  Just because I've been here longer." 
We had Zone Conference this weekend and we got to learn a lot about the plan of salvation and the Atonement and it's importance.  I'll tell you more in detail later.  We have 2 YSA I think at the most. We are doing FHE's and we are starting English classes in the chapel this week.  That should be fun."

That is all for this week.  Next week will be Both Elder Williams and Montano 1 year mark!

Now the birthday is not only for 20 year olds, but for 1 year olds, too!

"I have a great companion in Elder Montaño and we will be turning a year the same day.  We will have the shirt burning ritual and we'll send you the video.  hahahahaha."

This sounds ominous!  Chris had no idea what a shirt burning ritual is, soooooo I guess we wait for the video footage and hope they don't burn anything down!!!!!

Love from all the Williams, including Elder Williams!