Monday, September 26, 2011

Mon, Sep 26, 2011 at 5:19 PM

Hey there family! It is great to hear from you guys again. Thanks for writing all of these weeks for 20 months. There are other missionaries that don´t even hear from there parents or they stop writing much because they are almost going home. It is great that everyone is good and healthy and that you are having spiritual experiences every week.

Good news. I am still here in La Concepción! I get to have another change in paradise. I also got a new comp named Elder Chavez.

He is from Guatemala and his parents also served missions. He has about 18 months and he is cool. He teaches the lessons really clear and easy to understand. Something I am enjoying and bettering my own teaching now. He also speaks a lot of English so he is always wanting to practice with me. He is a combination of Ben Ward and Bobby Hancock. He reminds me a lot of them in what he does.

Rachel YSA sounds like a lot of fun. That is good that Delina is getting married. Do I know Zack? Scott is still going strong too? Are they still doing indoor soccer? How do you like your little red car? That is really funny with Dad going to the YSA activity and being your earth-friendly boyfriend for the night, haha. Did anyone ask or did they already know? That is really awesome Rachel that you were accepted to BYU Idaho and I will be praying for you to get into BYU Provo.

Mom you are a working machine. Thanks for the work and sweat that you do for us chillins. I love you so much for that, but don't worry because you won't need to that in about 4 months. I really do appreciate it a whole lot Mom but I have never told you that. As for your question about my goals, I haven't thought about it too much. I read that that can be thought out on the plane ride home. I have a lot of time coming home. What my general plans are are getting a job between the time till school starts up again. Going to BYU Utah and getting a place with friends from the mission, study business as a major and medicine as minor. Return to Nicaragua during breaks for what you already know and see where it goes. That is very general and I want to talk to you guys more about this. Maybe we don´t have much time to talk about this while I am here but when I am at home we will talk a lot more. A lot of fasting and prayer. This is neither set either but that is the idea.

Here are a few more flowers from down here to help you feel better:






As for the parents of Jaime and Elmer, I haven´t heard anything about them. Oh I am sure they will be angry and hopefully we don´t meet each other in the street.

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!! Rachel, that is awesome that you are 23 years old. How do you feel? I know how you feel being only 1 year and 11 months older than me. I still haven´t accepted it yet but it is ok. We are getting old. I will buy something here special for you.

Well I love you guys waaaaaaayyyyyy much. The office called me and said they were buying my ticket for Sacramento California at the very moment talking to me so I will be getting the flight plans soon.

The amount of rice eaten daily in Nicaragua Hearts

Elder Ochs

Monday, September 19, 2011

Mon, Sep 19, 2011 at 5:53 PM

So this is me equipped up in hunting gear. That Armadillo case is on my side and that bracelet is of cow hide.


This is the picture of the zone before changes.


The baptism and marriage we had this weekend for Jaime and Elmer and their daughter Yasari.


The last was a one way trip to Los Angeles. I think it cost like 10 cordabas or something, being 50 cents, haha. I almost got on.


These are some cool flowers I found:






and Elder Sosa with Niño, the pitbull of Ivanio.

So here are the bugs:

The first is a very scary one with red pincers. He was eating something very ferociously. It then took flight as soon as I took the picture.


The other one is one that had see through wings like plastic.


The last is a beetle that likes to grab on to things


and another with him on my tie.


Well, the pictures explain a lot of what happened this week. As for the meeting with the parents of Jaime and Elmer, it didn´t go that great so we had to take other options. We have another investigator that is a lawyer and they found a way around the permission. It was all legal so it was fine. They are now happily together and now with the Holy Ghost. It was a really good turn out for the Baptism too. We had about 2 families and 6 people. It was a really cool experience and it made me so happy. I had worked really hard to get those baptisms. Including a few miles in the dark and rainstorm. I think I got a little bit of an idea of how the war was for Grandpa except for the bullets and explosions and stuff. But in the end everything went well. Sunday we had another family come to church that are also pilas and they liked the church a lot. It is also a family of four. If I stay here another change I will baptize them for sure.

I am not sure what else to write. The next time that I write you I will know if I am in another area or still here in La Concha. One thing I do need to know is which airport will I be returning to and what is the name of our new Stake President? I got my "trunky papers" and I need that information if I want to come home. I have permission to come check tomorrow so if you can send that info as soon as possible then that would be great.

Well I love you guys a whole bunch and I will see you in 4 months.

Lago Managua Hearts

Elder Ochs
Mon, Sep 12, 2011 at 4:52 PM

Well, I don't have a lot of time but here are a few more pictures of some of the flowers that we have in our backyard.







That is very interesting Rachel. I guess that I will have to be careful when I get home and always have running shoes on, haha. I am glad that you finally took the BOMB pills because those buggers can be crazy. I am glad that you are having a good time.

Dad I learned about the grease fire thing from scouts of course. The sister only used the shirt for cleaning so it was fine with her. Better than the whole house, haha.

I wanted the painting for when I get back so I can have it in my room. It would be really cool.

The investigators are doing fine and we are preparing a family for the end of this week. It is for Jaime and Elmer. The only problem is that we have to talk to their parents first to give permission on the whole thing. That is why my letter will be so short because we are running over there right now and we got to the cyber late. We had a activity in the church in an another area so we got back a little late to our area. Sorry I will definitely write more next week. I want to tell you that I love you all very very much and I will hear from you guys next week.

Pile of Trash Heights here in Nicaragua Hearts,

Elder Ochs

Monday, September 5, 2011

Mon, Sep 5, 2011 at 2:43 PM

Oh wow there is a lot of stuff happening now at home. Ryan has gotten back with Little Pizza again and still is a thief. Just let him know that he is still a wierdo. Thanks Rachel for the scripture you sent me. I don´t really remember reading that before and it is really cool. That is cool that you got to talk to Curt about Panama and what not too.

So the answer to all of those questions you gave me. The Papaya kid is at where we eat at night. He is going to give me an awesome armadillo carrier. There are a lot of armadillos down by the river here and they catch them and use their hard shells for european hand bags. They said they will write my name in it and give me one, haha. The garden in the backyard is taken care of by the sister that lives in a shed in the backyard, haha. She is wierd but really nice. I will take a picture of her shed next week. The Guacamole Ranchitas were kind of salty and made your tongue numb. The people that came to the baptism of Jose and Santos are from another area, which stinks. Supposedly they liked the church a lot and are going to send a document of rejection to their old church and come to ours now. There are a lot down there but I can´t baptize any of them. Of course it is great that they will be members but they are cool people I would have liked to get to know. Oh well, the Lord´s work, not mine. Jose Reyes knows how to make cool water jug things with the Jicaro shell and he said he will make on for me. We always get bitten by fleas when we go there but oh well. We were over there the other night and we played an interesting game with them.


Jaime and Elmer are having a little bit of problems so they need your prayers and Margarita is still being really stubborn about all of this salvation business. They caught the guys that robbed Elder Sosa and got all of his stuff back miraculously, so that is cool. They also found the guy who killed the Father and he looks like one of the Beatles with a bad haircut, haha.

It was a drawn description. As for something more in the package, I can´t really think of anything else. Whatever you like.

That is good that someone is getting married like every week now. It sounds like a fun game you guys got into at the wedding. Did anyone ever get the 20 point shot? I don´t get why people complicate weddings so much either. It is too much of a headache with all of the ribbons and nice stuff. I will have mine ready the morning of, it is easy, haha. Ask Rachel what flavor of soda she wants for hers now.

There was a lot of things that happened this week but I don´t have to much time to write about it all. Don´t worry though because I am writing a lot in my journal everynight now. I really have gotten into the habit now. One thing is that I am reading Jesus the Christ again. I found out by a guy we contacted that everything in the world is fine to eat and consume except frogs. Suppossedly it is somewhere in "the word" referring to the Bible but he didn´t remember where it was, conveniently.

I pulled a really big pile of wood in a tiny wood cart to the house of someone we met in the street. I went up a hill and everything and then she didn´t accept us to teach her another day. Next time I meet her with a cart of wood again, I am going to sit on it. A few days later I carried another heavy pile of wood but on my head this time all the way to her house too. The lady also rejected us. I am not helping ladies with wood anymore.

The hermana next to our house made us some really good quesillos. It is basically tortilla, mozzarilla cheese, onions, and cream. I am going to make it when I get home.

The other day coming to our house we came around the corner and we had an encounter. There was a loose pitbull right in front of the gate to get into our house. If an encounter with a loose pitbull in Nicaragua isn´t scary enough he also had foam saliva coming out of his mouth. Rabies! He just stood there for a while staring at us waiting for one of us to move to attack. We just stood there completely still till for some reason he just turned around and began to walk away but the entire time looking back at us. Elder Sosa had the keys to get in but I was ready to hop the fence as fast as possible.

We also almost had a big accident at the house where we eat. The sister left the house with oil on the stove heating up. I was sitting in the kitchen, which I usually don´t do, when it started to smoke a lot. I thought she was just boiling water so I didn´t think much of it till a 3 foot flame burst out of nowhere. Elder Sosa was about to throw water on it but I stopped him before he could. I grabbed the pot and put it outside and threw a shirt over it. It burnt the shirt but that is the least of what could have happened. It was about to catch the curtains on fire, then the wall and then the gas tank which is right next to the stove, which would have been a huge grenade, if I wasn´t sitting there to put it out.

A young women in our ward that we reactivated, painted a really cool painting of Jesus Christ and Joseph Smith.




It is actually really cool. It gave me the idea that Rachel can do a painting of Jesus Christ for me. That would be really cool Rachel and I would frame it and everything for my room. What do you think? Please please please.

We had a new investigator come to church so that was cool and we are teaching a lawyer who has a lot of really thought out questions. She analizes things very well.

Here is a picture of a really cool looking spider I saw the other day.

Sorry I didn't get the spider in focus very well but you can get the idea.

Well I am loving it here in Nicaragua with all of the crazy adventures but always with the protection of the Lord, which is cool. I love the people here a lot and you guys too. I love you lots and lots.

Weezer Hearts

Elder Ochs